tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40549203524149718452024-03-18T17:12:05.210-04:00Buffalo Bandits HistoryA year-by-year review of Buffalo's indoor lacrosse team, plus some historical league statistics.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger83125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-46117911048774107682024-03-17T12:00:00.002-04:002024-03-18T17:02:28.612-04:00Bandits' Margin of Result by Year<p>I received a note on X.com from a fan who said all of the close games in 2023-24 were killing him. </p><p>I went to work. And he's on to something. </p><p>Here's a list of the average margin of victory in a Bandits' regular-season game by year. We're not done with 2023-24 yet, but I can see his point.</p><p><b>Year - Total/Games - Avg. Margin - Top Blowout</b><br /></p><p>2023-24 - 28/13 - 2.15 - 4 goals<br /></p><p>2022-23 - 64/18 - 3.55 - 11 goals<br /></p><p>2021-22 - 80/18 - 4.44 - 12 goals<br /></p><p>2019-20 - 36/11 - 3.27 - 7 goals<br /></p><p>2018-19 - 90/18 - 5.00 - 11 goals<br /></p><p>2017-18 - 92/18 - 5.11 - 13 goals<br /></p><p>2016-17 - 71/18 - 3.94 - 13 goals<br /></p><p>2016 - 67/18 - 3.72 - 7 goals<br /></p><p>2014-15 - 68/18 - 3.77 - 9 goals<br /></p><p>2013-14 - 60/18 - 3.33 - 11 goals</p><p>2013 - 68/16 - 4.25 - 14 goals</p><p>2012 - 72/16 - 4.50 - 11 goals</p><p>2011 - 48/16 - 3.00 - 9 goals</p><p>2010 - 47/16 - 2.94 - 7 goals</p><p>2009 - 73/16 - 4.56 - 17 goals</p><p>2008 - 63/16 - 3.94 - 9 goals</p><p>2007 - 61/16 - 3.81 - 10 goals</p><p>2006 - 46/16 - 2.88 - 10 goals</p><p>2005 - 66/16 - 4.13 - 11 goals</p><p>2004 - 45/16 - 2.81 - 8 goals</p><p>2003 - 79/16 - 4.94 - 14 goals</p><p>2002 - 46/16 - 2.88 - 11 goals</p><p>2001 - 76/14 - 5.43 - 13 goals</p><p>2000 - 48/12 - 4.00 - 11 goals<br /></p><p>More to come on this as this season progresses. We'll be selling blood pressure medicine at the concession stands in the meantime. </p><p><b>Updated on March 18, 2024</b><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-51649137163614920912024-02-18T11:50:00.005-05:002024-02-18T11:50:57.719-05:00Bandits' Blown Leads and Comebacks (2017-18 to 2023-24)<p>The Bandits had an 8-2 lead in Halifax on February 16, 2024, but still lost by a score of 14-12.</p><p>Ouch.</p><p>This begs the question ... have the Bandits ever had a six-goal lead and lost the game before? It's going to take a little research to go back to the start of records, but at least I've started it. In case of multiple leads of the same margin, I've taken the last one. <br /></p><p><b>Lead - Opponent - Date - Final</b></p><p>6 (8-2) - @Halifax - 12/16/24 - 14-12</p><p>4 (5-1) - Toronto - 4/30/22 - 10-7 </p><p>4 (5-1) - Toronto - 12/21/18 - 17-12</p><p>3 (8-5) - @Rochester - 1/20/23 - 15-12</p><p>3 (4-1) - Colorado - 3/18/23 - 13-8 </p><p>3 (6-3) - @Colorado - 6/11/22 - 11-9<br /></p><p>3 (3-0) - Vancouver - 1/13/18 - 11-10o<br /></p><p>2 (7-5) - Georgia - 12/29/23 - 9-8</p><p>2 (3-1) - @Colorado - 5/29/23 (Playoffs)</p><p>2 (3-1) - Colorado - 5/18/22 (Playoffs)</p><p>2 (2-0) - Halifax - 12/28/19 - 15-10 </p><p>2 (4-2) - @Calgary - 5/25/19 - 14-13o</p><p>2 (2-0) - Toronto - 4/21/18 - 16-11</p><p>2 (2-0) - Rochester - 4/28/18 - 15-13 <br /></p><p></p><p></p><p>Looking at the team's best comebacks might be more gratifying for its fans:</p><p><b>Lead - Opponent - Date - Final</b></p><p>7 (12-5) - @Saskatchewan - 1/19/18 - 16-15o</p><p>4 (5-1) - Rochester - 2/4/23 - 13-10</p><p>4 (6-2) - @Philadelphia - 1/27/23 - 13-9</p><p>4 (8-4) - Philadelphia - 2/18/23 - 13-12o</p><p>4 (6-2) - @Philadelphia - 3/8/19 - 12-11o </p><p>4 (4-0) - Toronto - 3/23/19 - 8-6<br /></p><p>3 (8-5) - @Rochester - 1/13/24 - 15-13</p><p>3 (9-6) - Halifax - 3/10/23 - 10-9o </p><p>3 (5-2) - @San Diego - 3/25/23 - 7-6o</p><p>3 (5-2) - Toronto - 4/22/23 - 11-10</p><p>3 (17-14) @New York - 1/30/22 - 18-17o </p><p>3 (9-6) - Halifax - 3/26/22 - 16-11</p><p>3 (7-4) - Calgary - 2/18/19 - 12-10</p><p>o - Indicates overtime game<br /></p><p><b>Updated through February 18, 2024</b><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-23301411812490232032024-01-19T11:21:00.001-05:002024-01-19T16:50:08.625-05:00Biggest Difference in Goals Scored by Halves (2014 to 2023-24)<p>On January 13, 2024, the Bandits and Knighthawks piled up 20 goals in the first half. Then, in the second half, they only combined for eight. It was sort of like watching a different sport. </p><p>Is that a big difference as these things go? I needed to find out. Let's go back a ways and see how it compares (overtime does not count in the second half), and it turns out you have to go back to 2016 to find a bigger difference:</p><p><b>No. (1st - 2nd) - Opponent - Date</b></p><p>13 (7-20) - Vancouver - 3/25/16</p><p>12 (20 - 8) - @Rochester - 1/13/24</p><p>11 (20-9) - @ New England - 4/26/15 <br /></p><p>10 (10 - 20) - Rochester - 1/31/20 </p><p>10 (10 - 20) - @New England - 2/19/17<br /></p><p>9 (6 - 15) - Toronto - 4/22/23 </p><p>9 (5 - 14) - @Toronto - 5/21/22 (Playoff Game)</p><p>9 (9 - 18) - @New England - 3/23/18</p><p>9 (7 - 16) - New England - 4/4/15</p><p>9 (14- 5) - Minnesota - 4/12/14</p><p>9 (15 - 6) - @Rochester - 5/17/14 (Playoff Game) <br /></p><p><b>Updated on January 18, 2024</b><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-77886300731196946962024-01-07T09:31:00.004-05:002024-02-01T14:08:56.580-05:00Longest Wait for Bandits' First Goal (2009 to 2023-24)<p>When a team doesn't score in the first few minutes of a game, its fans can get anxious. After all, the average total of goals in an NLL game is probably around 22. Besides, no team wants to be the first to be shut out - as unlikely as that is. (The Bandits have only blanked an opponent for an entire half once.) The thought to check the history came up during the Colorado game on 1/6/24. Sure enough, it was an impressive time.<br /></p><p>Let's see how long the wait for the first goal can be (more work to do on this one). Here is the Bandits' list; both include playoff games:</p><p><b>Time - Opponent - Date</b></p><p>38:39 - @Rochester - 2/8/14</p><p>24:19 - @Calgary - 4/18/17</p><p>23:59 - @New York - 5/9/09 (Playoff game) <br /></p><p>22:17 - Toronto - 1/10/14</p><p>20:51 - @Rochester - 3/4/17</p><p>20:12 - Rochester - 2/24/18</p><p>19:52 - Albany - 2/18/22</p><p>18:56 - @Saskatchewan - 1/19/18 </p><p>18:21 - @Minnesota - 3/23/14<br /></p><p>18:09 - Halifax - 3/10/23</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p> </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>And here's how long opponents had to wait:</p><p><b>Time - Opponent - Date</b></p><p>24:41 - Colorado - 1/6/24</p><p>24:40 - Colorado - 3/15/14 <br /></p><p>23:16 - Rochester - 1/25/14 </p><p>22:24 - Colorado - 3/9/13</p><p>21:37 - @Toronto - 5/5/17<br /></p><p>20:52 - @San Diego - 3/25/23</p><p>20:43 - @Toronto - 5/1/10 (Playoff game) <br /></p><p>20:27 - @Rochester - 4/19/14 <br /></p><p>20:22 - @Minnesota - 3/23/14 </p><p>19:52 - @Toronto - 1/27/24<br /></p><p></p><br /><p></p><p><i>(Updated on February 1, 2024) </i></p><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-36705016269543251532023-12-30T16:59:00.007-05:002024-03-18T17:11:34.202-04:00Longest Wait for a Two-Goal Lead in a Bandits Game (from 2011)<p>Admittedly, this is a silly record. But, it was a slightly silly game in the mathematical sense.</p><p>On December 29, 2023, the Georgia Swarm scored a goal to take the lead. The Buffalo Bandits eventually answered. Buffalo took a 2-1 lead and lost it. Georgia had the lead at 3-2, 4-3 and 5-4. <br /></p>No team in that Swarm-Bandits game had a two-goal lead until the fourth quarter. Is that very long? Let's check by time. I've gone back to 2011, and was the record-holder ... for less than three months. The 3/8/24 game with Saskatchewan never did have a two-goal lead, including more than five minutes of overtime. Remarkable. <br /><p><b>Time - Opponents - Date</b></p><p>65:22 - Saskatchewan at Buffalo - 3/8/24</p><p>47:50 - Georgia at Buffalo - 12/29/23</p><p>44:51 - Philadelphia at Buffalo - 1/27/12 <br /></p><p>44:50 - Calgary at Buffalo - 5/18/19 (playoffs) <br /></p><p>31:32 - Albany at Buffalo - 5/7/22 (playoffs) </p><p>29:43 - Buffalo at Toronto - 4/15/16 </p><p>29:24 - Buffalo at Rochester - 2/16/13</p><p>29:04 - Buffalo at Philadelphia - 2/12/12</p><p>28:15 - Boston at Buffalo - 4/16/11<br /></p><p>27:59 - Rochester at Buffalo - 3/3/17<br /></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p><i>(Updated through March 18, 2024)</i><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-78356256166010639332023-06-05T14:34:00.020-04:002023-06-07T16:45:52.269-04:00The 2022-23 Season<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjR0I4dKNSX1CShLbTqPcmIvVlGFvl7P-xkR5ouTJ0ywEnRQcC-FQSAe2Tm04MnvEMZdAzCQsPPb0wmux6y8d36CS0n4egve_5TrRgAT_4td1-t_gtIG2cgsKtR5mXwsb-rHNbA6gHMf5wUPBVb-ydPy8VaJrnFCWCaqH1KEnaB8DeuVZlKdzzrtAa/s650/BanditsTitle.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="303" data-original-width="650" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjR0I4dKNSX1CShLbTqPcmIvVlGFvl7P-xkR5ouTJ0ywEnRQcC-FQSAe2Tm04MnvEMZdAzCQsPPb0wmux6y8d36CS0n4egve_5TrRgAT_4td1-t_gtIG2cgsKtR5mXwsb-rHNbA6gHMf5wUPBVb-ydPy8VaJrnFCWCaqH1KEnaB8DeuVZlKdzzrtAa/w622-h290/BanditsTitle.jpg" width="622" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><p><span style="font-size: small;">It was an endless summer for the Buffalo Bandits in 2022. The players, coaches and management realized it had let a golden opportunity - a championship-deciding game at home - get away. That seemed to be on everyone's minds not only through the start of training camp, but realistically during the season as well. No one was chanting "2008" at the team, but the weight of losing three finals in five years was a heavy one. </span></p></div><div style="text-align: left;"><p><span style="font-size: small;">Still, the business of lacrosse went on. The Bandits had no time to ponder one big decision once the playoffs ended. The National Lacrosse League was expanding to Las Vegas for the 2022-23 season, and the new franchise needed players. Buffalo knew it was losing one of them, and it was quite clear that the biggest decision came down to protecting either Connor Fields or Chase Fraser. They both brought different qualities to the team, but were both valuable. After some agonizing, Las Vegas took Fields. </span></p></div><div style="text-align: left;"><p><span style="font-size: small;">It's of course easy to second-guess any decision like that. The Bandits tried to reacquire Fields immediately, but couldn't reach a deal. Instead, the Desert Dogs sent him to Rochester in a trade involved a ton (well, five) draft choices plus a player changing hands. As it turned out, Fields thrived in Rochester. He exploded to 52 goals and 60 assists for 112 points, good for second-team all-NLL honors, and he might have been very helpful when injuries hurt the Bandits up front. Fraser, meanwhile, missed much of the season with an injury, although the team's offense did eventually gel once he returned to the lineup. </span></p></div><div style="text-align: left;"><p><span style="font-size: small;">Some other offseason moves turned out to have little effect on the roster. Kellen McClair was acquired from Calgary for a second-round pick in 2023, but he had trouble finding playing time and was released in midseason. Buffalo picked up Devyn Mayea from San Diego for a couple of draft choices. He never made it off the holdout list. Top pick Cam Wyers didn't play for the Bandits during the 2022-23 season, but second-rounder Dylan Robinson did suit up in a couple of games. Kevin Brownell signed with New York, and Jordan Stouros was dealt to Rochester. </span></p></div><div style="text-align: left;"><p><span style="font-size: small;">The nucleus was the same, though, and everyone understood the goal: Finish the job.
"I want guys to understand that we have a really good team, a great team," coach John Tavares said. "We just need
to learn how to get over that last obstacle to a championship, to find out what
it takes. Sometimes it takes more grit, more getting into dirty areas than
having stats. We want to commit to making the right play. I’m not saying we
have to change much. We just have to build off our success. Yes, we didn’t win,
but we do have something good here. It can easily implode. It’s hard just to
make the playoffs. Think back to last year. We played one game in the first
round. They had a great goaltender. That’s a battle. Toronto – that’s a battle.
It’s hard to get back to the championship. I want to build off the positives,
because we had a lot of positives last year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Yes, when I think about last year I still think of that championship loss.
Sometimes teams take a longer time to win a championship. Our goal is to get to
the playoffs, get to the championship (round), and win the championship. That’s
our goal every year." </span></p></div><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ltE_YssZCzk" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>
</p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The Bandits had run off a long winning streak right at the start of the 2021-22 season. The Albany Firewolves took care of any Buffalo hopes of repeating that right away. They came into the KeyBank Center and won an 11-10 decision. The Bandits' offense looked off for much of the night, falling behind early and never taking the lead except for a 1-0 margin at the start of the game. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">“Early on our offense couldn’t get into a flow, and
we were down 4-1,” Kyle Buchanan said. “The defense did a good job the whole
night, but the offense had some opportunities but just couldn’t bury it.”</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">
The loss looked worse at the end of the season, since it was only one of three wins by Albany in the entire year. The Firewolves finished 3-15, the worst record in the league. But at the time, the bigger concern was the next game on December 17 - a matchup with Toronto in Hamilton. But the Bandits rebounded nicely for an 11-8 win, as Matt Vinc stopped a remarkable 52 of 60 shots.
Buffalo had another week off before its next game, but it's not as if the team could come together for some extra practice. A blizzard struck the area during the break, leaving the team and its fans a bit snowbound. "I was in Buffalo downtown – I live there right now
– and I decided to drive to Hamburg at 9:30 in the morning (on Dec. 23),” Dhane
Smith said. “That wasn’t very smart of me. It took a long, long time, but I
made it safely.”</span></p><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; line-height: 107%;">The snow eventually stopped, the streets eventually were cleared, and the Bandits went back to work. Byrne certainly played like he was happy to be out of a snowy prison. He scored seven goals in an 18-13 win over visiting Halifax. Only three other Bandits had reached that number in a game - Mark Steenhuis, John Tavares and Darris Kilgour.</span></p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><p></p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; line-height: 107%;">
“I’m super-proud of the boys, after we started 0-1
against Albany,” Byrne said. “It was a big hit for us. But we went up to
Toronto and battled, and then we had a statement game against Halifax. It says
a lot about the guys.”</span></p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><p></p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; line-height: 107%;">The next game on January 7 was easier - an 18-9 win over Georgia on the road. Kyle Buchanan, Smith and Tehoka Nanticoke all had eight points in the romp. The Swarm was better in the rematch of the home-and-home series on January 14, but the Bandits came from behind to win 11-9. Byrne had six goals and three assists in a game that was a little ugly at times.</span></p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><p></p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; line-height: 107%;">"I think offensively, at times we were trying to do too
much,” Kyle Buchanan added. “They’ve got some good offensive players over
there. We missed some loose balls, we missed some chances. In this league,
everyone can score and everyone can play. That’s what happens.” </span></p></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/78s3LFKBhiM" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">From there, Buffalo had its first look at the surprise team of the league, the Rochester Knighthawks, on January 20. They were well out of the playoffs in the 2021-22 season, but had won five in a row to start this campaign to surprise just about everyone. The surprises continued - Rochester scored five straight goals to open the fourth quarter to earn a 15-12 win. Fields, by the way, said hello to his old teammates with three goals and five assists. The Knighthawks didn't keep that pace up, but they did qualify for the playoffs - a good-sized step forward. <br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">The team was supposed to follow that game with a trip to Halifax, but Covid-19 wiped that game off for a while. Buffalo returned to action on January 27 in Philadelphia to start a two-game road swing. That contest marked the debut of Adam Bomberry, who was acquired from Albany for Thomas Vaesen on January 19. The Bandits trailed 6-3 at halftime, but outscored the Wings 10-3 in the second half to take a 13-9 contest. Smith had nine points. It was a similar story against New York a day later. The teams were tied 7-7 after 30 minutes, and Buffalo had a 9-3 edge from there to win by a score of 16-10. Smith upped his game to 12 points on the night. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">Rochester came to Buffalo on February 4, and the Knighthawks tried to make a statement early. They took a 5-1 lead in the first 20 minutes, and almost made it 6-1 through a goal that was wiped out by a crease violation. But the Bandits snapped back by scoring six goals in a row and 10 of the next 11. That's was the spark for the team to take a 13-10 win in the KeyBank Center, and gave it a 7-2 record and the division lead at the season's halfway point. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">
“That’s lacrosse – they are going to go on their runs, and
we are going to go on ours,” said, Smith, who had nine points. “I think the main thing when you look
in the mirror is staying off the refs and staying out of the penalty box. We’re
one of the top teams, and refs don’t like to make it easy for us. I think if we
stay out of the box, we’ll be fine.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">Smith didn't have his usual playmate, Byrne, in the lineup. He'd be out for three games with an injury. Others went missing as well, as the team was down five players at one point. That meant Smith needed some help on offense, and Brad McCulley provided it. He had four goals and five assists to go with Smith's 10 points - including the overtime winner - in a 13-12 squeaker.
</span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">“We had some guys missing and we had a little bit of a depth check,” McCulley
said. “We had to get it done. I’m getting more comfortable week by week, and
I’m getting put in spots where I’m able to do that. I’m happy to be able to do
that and help the team as best as I can.”</span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Buffalo finally made it to Halifax on March 3, and showed a second-half kick. The Bandits scored five straight goals at one point to take a 10-8, and held on for the 10-0 victory. Ian MacKay took a turn at filling in for Byrne with three goals and two assists. Another week later was another close win over Halifax - this time in overtime. Chris Cloutier, who missed several weeks with an injury, scored with 1:58 gone in the extra session for another 10-9 win. All these close games were tough on the heart. <br /></span></p><p>
</p><p><span style="font-size: small;">“It’s not by design, but good teams find a way to win,” Tavares said. “Now we’re doing that. We’re playing with fire a bit
here. Teams are strong. There’s a lot of parity in the league. You can’t take
anybody lightly.”</span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">But the win streak ended there, at the hands of a familiar rival. The Colorado Mammoth scored the game's final five goals for a 13-8 win right back in Buffalo - where it had won the title the previous June - on March 18. Byrne, back in the lineup for a second straight game, had six points. About the only good news of the night was the return of Fraser, finally back from offseason surgery. </span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">“It felt great to be back with the team,” he said
afterwards. “Terrible result, but it was great to be back out there. … It was a
six-month recovery process from the surgery I had. It was a lot of work, but
the fun part of it is getting back.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">The Bandits had a tough assignment a week later, traveling all the way to San Diego for a game. Buffalo's two biggest stars responded on defense in a game on March 25 that featured only 13 goals in total. Vinc was brilliant in 49 of 55 shots. Steve Priolo did the rest, with a slightly unexpected overtime that gave the Bandits a 7-6 win. Any good feelings from that cross-country win disappeared in a hurry on April 1. Toronto jumped out to a 7-0 lead, and coasted to an 18-7 win. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">The Bandits' problems were completely over two weeks later, as they struggled with the New York Riptide. But Byrne came to the rescue with an overtime goal - the fourth and final such win of the year - in an 11-10 outcome. If the Bisons had lost that game to New York, the entire season might have gone in a different direction ... making the score the Biggest Goal of the Season. “They haven’t been pretty, the wins that have come in the
last little while,” said Kyle Buchanan, who had a hat trick. “Again, we found a
way. Guys stepped up when they had to, and it was nice for the birthday boy to
finish it off there.” </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">The win kept Buffalo in the race for first place in the East, something that would be decided on April 22 when Toronto came back to town. The Rock must have felt good about their chances after the previous meeting of the teams, but Buffalo's three-goal burst in 96 seconds in the fourth quarter proved decisive in yet another 11-10 win. Vinc finished with 44 saves in a game that felt like the playoff games between the two teams a year ago. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">“It’s a fun matchup,” he said. “Any time you get to play for first place, you like that
competition and that challenge. … It seemed like it was the same script, as
they got a couple of chances late. It’s a testament to their team. … It was a
battle, and rightfully so, in a big game for first place.”
</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ytj8qtiYUDc" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>
<br /> </p><p class="MsoNormal">At that point, the Bandits had clinched first place in the division, and had everyone back in the lineup after a string of assorted injuries. A relatively meaningless game against Albany was just what the team needed under the circumstances, and the team capitalized on it on April 29. Buffalo slowly pulled away in scoring 16 goals in a 16-10 win over Albany to close the regular season. That guaranteed that the Bandits would have home field advantage throughout the playoffs.
Buffalo again finished 14-4. Smith had 132 points to finish second in the league in that category, while Byrne had 43 goals to lead the team. With all that out of the way, the season turned serious ... and avenging 2022 became the goal.</p><p class="MsoNormal">In the NLL awards, Smith finished second in the MVP voting to goalie Christian Del Blanco of Calgary. Smith was a first-team all-league selection. Priolo was a second-team pick for all-NLL honors on defense. Buchanan was a runner-up in the voting for the Sportsmanship Award and third in the Teammate of the Year balloting; either would have been a nice acknowledgment of his contributions to the team had he won it. Vinc was third in the voting for the goalie of the year.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Need a few unsung heroes? MacKay's contributions were well known in Buffalo, but he might not have caught the eye of those outside the 716. He was used in a variety of roles, and excelled in all of them. For example, Ian often played defense and sparkled in transition. But when Byrne was injured, MacKay moved up front and help the Bandits earn some important wins when they were missing their top offensive weapon. Nick Weiss started strong and settled in for what might have been his best season. Justin Martin - like all defensive defensemen - showed up every night and did his job well. <br /></p><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">A
best-of-one series is always dangerous, but the Bandits took the drama
out of the first round matchup with Rochester very quickly. Buffalo pulled ahead early, and
then had a 12-4 edge in the second half. The final score was 20-8, and
it really wasn't that close. Smith had 10 points and Byrne had nine, but
four others had at last four points. One of them was MacKay, who played
a brilliant game on transition. His steal that turned into a breakaway
that turned into a goal in the third quarter gave the Bandits a ton of
momentum.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">“I thought he was one of our best if not the best player
today,” Tavares said about MacKay. “He played 200 feet – played
defense, was on the power play, great on five-on-five. We definitely want to
get transition opportunities, and Mickey created some. When we ask him to play
offense, he’s played great. When we ask him to play defense, he’s played
great.” </span></span></div></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/r5RU93T4_Qk" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>
</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">Buffalo almost copied the script for Round Two against Toronto. The Bandits led 7-4 at halftime, and then had a 6-0 third quarter to blow the game open. Buffalo essentially killed time in the fourth quarter before celebrating a 14-5 win. Vinc had 52 saves on 57 shots, a fabulous .912 save percentage. And the rematch on May 13, a night later, in Hamilton was virtually a rerun. Buffalo piled up eight goals in the second quarter to go up 11-4. Nothing happened in the second half to change the outcome; the final score was 17-8. Cloutier finished with six goals. The team was obviously peaking at exactly the right time. <br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Bandits were in the NLL Finals for the fourth time in six years. And guess who was waiting. Yes, Colorado. The Mammoth had knocked off the top seeds, San Diego and Calgary, to return to represent the West. The Bandits had to be feeling confident. They had just won three straight games - in the playoffs, no less - by at least nine goals. That had never happened in the history of the franchise. What could go wrong? </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">Then word came that Byrne was out with an upper-body injury. There was no news on when he'd be back, but he'd definitely miss the opener of the series. The phrase "has to be cleared to play" was used around the team about his status, which led to speculation that a concussion was the problem. No matter what the injury was, though, this was no time to start planning the championship rally.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">Without Byrne, the blowouts figured to come to an end ... and they did. Buffalo had to go back to its formula of getting just enough goals to win, and they did so in a 13-12 win at the KeyBank Center. Buffalo took the lead for good with four straight goals at the start of the third quarter. Even so, this wasn't decided until the end. Zed Williams, from nearby Silver Creek, almost scored the tying goal on a wraparound at the buzzer. But time expired just before the shot was taken, and the game was over.
“I knew it was going to be a dogfight,” Smith said. “We went on a run. They went on theirs.
It comes down to little things. I felt like it was going to be a close game.” </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Bmy7N8L8jFY" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p>
Even so, the Mammoth had played the Bandits very well after a slow start in the opener of the best-of-three series. Colorado picked up its game a notch in the rematch, two days later. The Mammoth pulled away in the middle quarters, and Buffalo never really responded to the challenge. Colorado finished with a 16-10 win that had little entertainment value to Bandits' fans.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The
team re-crossed the country for a third and deciding game of the series
in Buffalo. Sound familiar? Colorado now had accounted for almost half
of all of the Bandits' losses covering the past two seasons, registering
five of Buffalo's 11 defeats in that span. The question on everyone's
minds was ... would Byrne play? By the end of practice the night of June
2, Tavares had the answer to how to fill out his lineup: Byrne was a go. What neither man knew was
how good he'd be. A crowd of 18,296 was waiting a night later to find out the answer.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Josh
needed little time to contribute, making the primary assist on
Nanticoke's opening goal. Then with the score tied at 1-1, Byrne's
long-distance shot entered the net with less than a second to go in the
period to put Buffalo ahead. Fraser added two more to give the Bandits a
4-2 lead after 30 minutes. Still, the Mammoth were playing rather well,
and seemed capable of a rally. After all, they had done so a year ago.<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">But
Byrne rose to the occasion. He had two goals in the first 3:14 of the
second half, and it felt like a major moment in the game. Byrne made it
four goals in the game and Smith scored his first of the night to make
it an 8-3 score with 15 minutes to go. You don't give a good Bandit team
a five-goal lead with 15 minutes to go. Colorado had to open up its
game, and thus become more prone to error. Buffalo capitalized with five
goals in less than six minutes. It was 13-4 with less than six minutes
left, and from there it was a matter of killing time. Still, Smith
wasn't taking any chances.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">“I was nervous the whole time,” he said. “Honestly, even when we were up
by quite a bit, it didn’t feel real. Anything can happen. It was a
crazy, emotional roller-coaster ride.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">Finally, the Bandits' MacKay had the ball in the Colorado zone with a few seconds left. He stood there and watched the time run out. Then he joined in a celebration that had been 15 years in the making. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">“I feel like 2016 I was a little kid – I didn’t understand it,” said Smith, who hugged cousin Billy Dee Smith of the 2008 champion Bandits team soon after the horn. “I was grateful that we got there, but I didn’t really get it. In
2019, we fell short. Each time we got a little better. Last year we got a
win under our belt. This year, we won the championship. Things have a
funny way of working, and I’m so thankful. I’d love to have four
championships, but this one means the world to me.” </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kri1V7Ayolg" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">Byrne was a major hero of the night with four crucial goals, and Smith was the MVP of the series with nine points. Still, the star of the show might have been Vinc. He made 46 saves on 50 shots. That's a save percentage of .920, the best by a Bandit in a playoff game since at least 2005 (when the records start). He said he wanted to bring a championship to Buffalo ever since joining the team, and he made sure it happened this time. That's not bad for a goalie who was less than a week from turning 41. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">“I said to him in line (as part of the postgame celebration), ‘You can’t
retire at four, with four goals against," general manager Steve Dietrich said. "He laughed at me. He’s the
backbone of our team, and we’re going to do our best to get him back. If
he’s ever going to leave, this is a pretty good time to leave, but
we’ll do our best. He’s a difference-maker for us, our ace in the hole.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">A loss would have meant that this team would have lost four finals in six years, and thus doomed to "very good, but ..." status. If you're thinking about the Buffalo Bills of the early 1990s with that description, you are on target. The win meant that players like Smith, Priolo and Weiss, who have been part of all four of those teams, always will be champions. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">The Bandits won 18 games during all of the 2021-22 season, and they won 19 games in 2022-23. One more game had made all the difference. Mission accomplished.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i>(Be notified of new posts on this site via Twitter @WDX2BB.)</i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-25988650740124055662023-05-26T15:55:00.010-04:002023-06-04T17:26:13.735-04:00Bandits' Playoff History<p>With no media guide - either team or league - available for the Bandits of the NLL, it's tough to find out the team's history. That's particularly discouraging in the playoffs, when information is always helpful.
</p><p>
So let's get to work. We'll give a line to every playoff game in team history for handy reference.
</p><p>
<b>Date - Opponent - Score - W/L - Attend.</b>
</p><p>3/27/92 - Boston - 22-16 - W<span> </span>15,603</p><p>4/4/92 - @Detroit - 19-16 - W - 4,136</p><p>4/11/92 - @Philadelphia - 11-10* - W - 13,017 (Championship Game)<br /></p><p>4/3/93 - Boston - 12-10 - W - 16,325</p><p>4/10/93 - Philadelphia - 13-12 - W - 16,325 (Championship Game)<br /></p><p>4/9/94 - Detroit - 16-10 - W - 15,836</p><p>4/16/94 - Philadelphia - 15-26 - L - 16,284 (Championship Game)<br /></p><p>3/25/94 - Philadelphia - 16-19 - L - 10,557</p><p>4/6/96 - Rochester - 18-10 - W - 14,435</p><p>4/12/96 - Philadelphia - 15-10 - W - 16,230 (Championship Game)<br /></p><p>4/5/97 - New York - 19-10 - W - 12,155</p><p>4/12/97 - Rochester - 12-15 - L - 18.055 (Championship Game)<br /></p><p>4/18/98 - @Philadelphia - 12-17 - L - 9,795 </p><p>4/21/00 - Rochester - 11-15 - L - 7,873</p><p>4/19/03 - Calgary - 16-9 - W - 6,761</p><p>4/26/03 - @Rochester - 13-16 - L - 8,834</p><p>4/17/04 - @Rochester - 13-9 - W - 7,029</p><p>4/25/04 - @Toronto - 19-10 - W - 14,618</p><p>5/7/04 - @Calgary - 11-14 - L - 19,289</p><p>4/23/05 - Rochester - 14-19 - L - 10,014</p><p>4/23/06 - Minnesota - 11-10 - W - 8,110</p><p>4/29/06 - Rochester - 15-10 - W - 10,897</p><p>5/13/06 - Colorado - 9-16 - L - 16,104 (Championship Game)</p><p>4/22/07 - Minnesota - 14-8 - W - 9,003</p><p>4/27/07 - @Rochester - 13-14* - L - 8,558</p><p>5/2/08 - Philadelphia - 14-12 - W - 9,344</p><p>5/10/08 - New York - 19-12 - W - 11,012</p><p>5/17/08 - Portland - 14-13 - W - 18,690 (Championship Game)\</p><p>5/2/09 - Boston - 11-8 - W - 13,343</p><p>5/19/09 - @New York - 3-9 - L - 5,644</p><p>5/6/10 - @Toronto - 11-13 - L - 9,367</p><p>4/30/11 - Boston - 11-10 - W - 11,273</p><p>5/7/11 - Toronto - 11-12 - L - 12,349</p><p>5/5/12 - @Toronto - 6-7- L - 9,472</p><p>5/3/14 - @Toronto - 15-13 - W - 7,867</p><p>5/10/14 - Rochester - 12-8 - W - 9,209</p><p>5/17/14 - @Rochester - 8-13 - L - 8,651</p><p>5/17/14 - @Rochester - 1-2* - L (Minigame)</p><p>5/8/15 - @Rochester - 11-14 - L - 6,527</p><p>5/16/16 - @New England - 15-10 - W - 3,697</p><p>5/21/16 - New England - 20-15 - W - 14,255</p><p>5/28/16 - Saskatchewan - 9-11 - L - 12,692 (Finals)<br /></p><p>6/4/16 - Saskatchewan - 10-11 - L - 15,182 (Finals)<br /></p><p>5/4/19 - New England - 13-6 - W - 11,776</p><p>5/11/19 - Toronto - 12-8 - W - 11,635</p><p>5/18/19 - Calgary - 7-10 - L - 15,747 (Finals)</p><p>5/25/19 - Calgary - 13-14* - L - 17,038 (Finals)</p><p>5/7/22 - Albany - 10-5 - W - 12,535</p><p>5/15/22 - Toronto - 18-17 - W - 10,258</p><p>5/21/22 - @Toronto - 10-9 - W - 7,992</p><p>6/4/22 - Colorado - 15-14 - W - 14,274 (Finals) <br /></p><p>6/11/22 - @Colorado - 8-11 - L - 10,082 (Finals)<br /></p><p>6/18/22 - Colorado - 8-10 - L - 19,060 (Finals) </p><p>5/6/23 - Rochester - 20-8 - W - 14,794 </p><p>5/12/23 - Toronto - 14-5 - W - 11,510</p><p>5/13/23 - @Toronto - 17-8 - W - 8,304 </p><p>5/27/23 - Colorado - 13-12 - W - 14,260 (Finals)<br /></p><p>5/29/23 - @Colorado - 10-16 - L - 10,686 (Finals)</p><p>6/3/23 - Colorado - 13-4 - W - 18,296 (Finals)<br /></p><p>* - indicates overtime </p><p><b>Updated on June 4, 2023</b><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-41961705806704882282023-05-14T15:58:00.003-04:002023-05-26T15:56:26.169-04:00Best Goal Differential in Three-Game Winning Streak<p>The Bandits were very sharp in their first three playoff games in 2023, piling up three one-sided results. Was it a franchise record in terms of goal differential?</p><p>Let's take a look at the numbers. Buffalo had to win all three games to be considered for the list; overlaps are allowed:</p><p><b>G.D. - Dates</b></p><p>35 - 2/10/96 to 3/2/96</p><p>33 - 2/3/96 to 2/24/96</p><p>32 - 2/8/92 to 3/7/92</p><p>31 - 2/24/96 to 3/9/96 <br /></p><p>30 - 3/7/92 to 3/21/92</p><p>30 - 5/6/23 to 5/13/23* <br /></p><p>29 - 2/28/92 to 3/7/92</p><p>29 - 4/25/15 to 5/2/15 </p><p></p><p>23 - 1/3/09 to 1/16/09 </p><p>23 - 1/16/09 to 1/29/09</p><p>23 - 1/26/19 to 2/9/19</p><p>* - Playoff games <br /></p><p>Here's something to remember: One game can mess up the numbers. In 1996, the Bandits beat Charlotte 28-6. That is a big boost to three-game goal differential. In 2009, Buffalo had a 23-6 romp over Rochester, and that will help a team appear a list too. </p><p>But here's the remarkable part. Buffalo had never defeated a team by at least nine goals in three straight games before its run at the start of the 2023 playoffs. It wasn't a record goal differential, but it was still very impressive. <br /></p><p><b>Updated on May 14, 2023</b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-66558032624231389452023-04-24T11:19:00.012-04:002023-05-14T16:25:26.177-04:00Significance of Leads in Bandits' Games (2018-19 to 2022-2023)<p>Like many of these short statistical essays, this starts with a question that came up in a game.<br />
<br />
The Bandits had fallen behind by a score of 2-0 to Toronto early in the game. The Rock's thrashing of Buffalo three weeks before that was fresh in everyone's mind. That game included a 7-0 start for Toronto, which essentially ended the game shortly after it started.</p><p>
So, when does a lead become a significant one? We need to go to the box scores.</p><p>The significance of a lead depends on a couple of factors. It's nice to be ahead, but it's nicer to lead later in the game. So let's see how the Bandits do with a lead at any point in a game, and then narrow it down. </p><p>I didn't bother with one- or two-goal leads for the game, because they are common enough to be rather meaningless for our purposes. Keep in mind that the Bandits won most of their games in this span, so the numbers skew high. And I should note that you only get credit for one lead of a particular margin in a game. So here's what happens when Buffalo has been ahead in the regular season:</p><p><b>Lead - Record</b></p><p>Three-goal lead - 40-4</p><p>Four-goal lead - 35-2</p><p>Five-goal lead - 30-0</p><p>Six-goal lead - 22-0</p><p>Seven-goal lead - 15-0</p><p>Eight-goal lead - 11-0</p><p>Nine-goal lead - 9-0</p><p>10-goal lead - 5-0</p><p>11-goal lead - 5-0</p><p>12-goal lead - 2-0 <br /></p><p>It looks like the Bandits are tough to stop once they get up three (at least in the last few seasons). Now for the flip side:</p><p><b>Deficit - Record</b></p><p>Three-goal deficit - 11-14</p><p>Four-goal deficit - 5-12</p><p>Five-goal deficit - 0-6</p><p>Six-goal deficit - 0-6</p><p>Seven-goal deficit - 0-5</p><p>Eight-goal deficit - 0-4</p><p>Nine-goal deficit - 0-2</p><p>10-goal deficit - 0-1</p><p>11-goal deficit - 0-1</p><p>Let's narrow down the margins to those in the fourth quarter. If the Bandits were ahead by a certain number at any point of the period (including one second), it counts for these purposes. I've added two-goal stats here, because they can be significant in such a small time span.</p><p><b>Lead - Record</b></p><p>Two-goal lead - 20-2</p><p>Three-goal lead - 16-1</p><p>Four-goal lead - 17-0</p><p>Five-goal lead - 19-0</p><p>Six-goal lead - 13-0</p><p>Seven-goal lead - 10-0 <br /></p><p>Eight-goal lead - 7-0</p><p>Nine-goal lead - 8-0</p><p>10-goal lead - 5-0</p><p>11-goal lead - 5-0</p><p>12-goal lead - 2-0 <br /></p><p></p><p>The Bandits are money in the bank once they have a two-goal lead in the fourth quarter - at least for the last two seasons. Let's turn the numbers around:</p><p><b>Deficit - Record</b></p><p>Two-goal deficit - 6-9</p><p>Three-goal deficit - 3-7 <br /></p><p>Four-goal deficit - 0-7</p><p>Five-goal deficit - 0-6</p><p>Six-goal deficit - 0-5</p><p>Seven-goal deficit - 0-5 <br /></p><p>Eight-goal deficit - 0-2<br /></p><p>Nine-goal deficit - 0-2</p><p>10-goal deficit - 0-1</p><p>11-goal deficit - 0-1</p><p>Based on this, it's safe to head to the exits or switch channels if the Bandits go down four. I'll be going back deeper into the team's history to see how these number change. </p><p><b>Updated on May 14, 2023</b><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-13893318735396999752023-04-02T21:45:00.004-04:002024-01-11T17:05:37.922-05:00Fewest goals by winning team in Bandits' game<p>The Bandits' seven-goal output was good enough to beat San Diego on March 25, 2023. Was it the lowest number ever recorded by a Buffalo team in a win?</p><p>It's relatively easy to go through the records on this one. Sure enough, it was a regular-season record for this particular Buffalo team. And, what's more, it tied the league record for such a win. <br /></p><p><b>Score - Date - Team</b></p><p>7-6 - 3/25/23 - @San Diego</p><p>8-7 - 3/23/19 - Toronto</p><p>8-7 - 4/14/06 - Philadelphia <br /></p><p>8-6 - 1/10/09 - @Toronto <br /></p><p>9-8 - 1/3/15 - Edmonton</p><p>9-8 - 3/6/11 - @Boston</p><p>9-8 - 4/9/11 - @Rochester</p><p>9-8 - 3/13/10 - @Boston <br /></p><p>9-6 - 1/15/11 - Philadelphia<br /></p><p></p><p>On the flip side, what's the lowest goal total to be on the winning side against the Bandits? </p><p><b>Score - Date - Team</b></p><p>7-6 - 2/15/20 - Philadelphia<br /></p><p>8-7 - 3/3/18 - @Colorado</p><p>8-7 - 1/25/02 - @Philadelphia</p><p>8-7 - 3/2/02 - @Toronto <br /></p><p>8-5 - 1/29/11 - @Toronto <br /></p><p>8-4 - 4/19/14 - @Rochester <br /></p><p>9-8 - 3/4/17 - @Rochester</p><p>9-7 - 4/16/10 - @Orlando <br /></p><p>9-6 - 2/8/14 - @Rochester</p><p>9-8 - 12/29/23 - Georgia</p><p> <br /></p><p><b>Updated through January 11, 2024</b><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-10753391284997302152022-06-22T12:03:00.006-04:002022-06-30T15:11:55.980-04:00The 2021-22 Season<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKNtXHJqCGKcLn_Ylh-DQKf3hpsJE-y7hveZy6rzvPSiPrzzXNan0jGclRAkpVzIgeAi8A401w2OhXez2GX-fhQOBdOfzaM6BHr1lSfo1QNVn90k8F-cFIfkxy6Uuhk4OdyKlsSn7zFA2TrkAB-x5e5NMrfuGMtZZ1tbV-hbLzmOaT9mwwpNmw-g08/s1032/Bandits.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="1032" height="323" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKNtXHJqCGKcLn_Ylh-DQKf3hpsJE-y7hveZy6rzvPSiPrzzXNan0jGclRAkpVzIgeAi8A401w2OhXez2GX-fhQOBdOfzaM6BHr1lSfo1QNVn90k8F-cFIfkxy6Uuhk4OdyKlsSn7zFA2TrkAB-x5e5NMrfuGMtZZ1tbV-hbLzmOaT9mwwpNmw-g08/w574-h323/Bandits.jpg" width="574" /></a></div><p> </p><p>When the Buffalo Bandits gathered again in November, 2021, they had some serious work to do - mostly in the form of introductions and reintroductions.</p><p></p><p>After all, they hadn't gotten together as a group since March, 2020, when the pandemic began. The team had Zoom meetings at regular intervals over the 20-month span, but it wasn't as if they practiced on the same field or even met in the same locker room.</p><p>"I was thinking last year that since ’92, I don’t think I’ve had a winter
off," general manager Steve Dietrich said. "It’s kind of scary. Obviously, more stuff went on than my
aggravation about not having lacrosse. It sort of puts a lot of stuff
into perspective than just counting down the time until we got back into
the building. It’s hard to believe that it was March (of 2020) that it was the
last time we were here." <br /></p><p>What's more, the cast of characters was a little different. Dietrich was still the GM, and John Tavares was still the coach. Players such as Dhane Smith, Josh Byrne, Matt Vinc and Steve Priolo were still on the roster. But the comings and goings continued in spite of the pandemic. For starters, the team lost defender Liam Patten to the Panther City Lacrosse Club, an expansion team in the National Lacrosse League. Patten had been acquired from Philadelphia during the pandemic break. <br /></p><p>Buffalo also had not one, but two draft classes. In 2020, the Bandits took Brad McCulley of Robert Morris in the first round. A year later, Buffalo had the third overall pick due to a trade with Rochester, and took Tehoka Nanticoke from the University at Albany. They also added to the local flavor of the team by trading for Connor Fields, a Western New Yorker who played at Bishop Timon and whose family had Bandits' season tickets. Kyle Buchanan had been acquired way back in 2020, and he joined a dynamic group of forwards. <br /></p><p>But everyone else had added players as well. That made it almost impossible to guess who would be good in the coming season. Even so, Buffalo had its strong nucleus back and figured to be a contender. As for who else might be good, well, we'd have to wait and see. Attendance was also a question mark, as no one knew how many people were willing to turn out with the Covid-19 virus still in the air.<br /></p><p>If nothing else, the Bandits' offense was ready to go on Opening Night (December 4). After Buffalo and Calgary played 30 even minutes in the first half at the KeyBank Center, the Bandits had a 7-0 third period to break the game open. The nicest surprise of the evening was Fields, who had four goals. It was my dream growing up to be part of the Bandits,” he said. “I came
to all these games as a kid. It was really special being out there. To
get a win in front of those fans, there’s nothing better than that.”<br /><br />
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The crowd wasn't quite as impressive. The team announced that 7,395 were in the building, but reports circulated that the actual attendance was closer to 5,000. It would prove to be a difficult climb - not only for the Bandits, but for the NLL in general. </p><p>Buffalo opened its road schedule a week later in Rochester, and its cousins down the Thruway (the Pegulas own both franchises) proved pesky for a while. But the Bandits ran off six straight goals in the fourth quarter to win going away, 12-8. Fields had four more goals. </p><p>After three weeks off (!), Buffalo returned home on January 8 to top a team that had Toronto on its uniform but that played its home games in Hamilton, 12-6. A 7-2 run in the second half was the decisive point. Chris Cloutier had a goal and six assists. “It was weird to wait so long to get the season started, and then have a
few weeks off in a row,” goaltender Matt Vinc said about the gap
between games. “We didn’t have a lot of practices. I’m proud of the way
guys came in focused. We were ready to play tonight. … It was a special
night to get a big win.”</p><p>The season-opening winning streak reached four games on January 14. Buffalo never did trail in taking a 12-10 decision, although the Swarm kept fighting back. Byrne had two goals and five assists in leading a balanced attack. The game wasn't too stylish, but it was still a way to get to 4-0. "It seemed like when it was 4-1, guys thought it was a point night – we
kind of took our foot off the gas,” Tavares said. “They took the
momentum. They scored a couple of goals, and you could hear their bench
cheering after goals. They thought they were in the game, and they were.
When you get a strong lead, sometimes you take it easy. It wasn’t. It
was a typically close NLL game.” </p><p>After a week off, the Bandits headed to Long Island for a date with the New York Riptide. In spite of what the score indicated, the goalies for both teams did make the trip. It was a crazy, back-and-forth game throughout. Buffalo had a 10-6 lead at the half, and was still ahead by a 14-11 score after thre periods. Then the Riptide opened the fourth with six straight goals in the first eight minutes of the period to take the lead. Down by 17-14, Chase Fraser, Fields and Byrne scored in the final four minutes to send the game to overtime. Then Cloutier finished the job by scoring 1:11 into overtime. Smith had two goals and nine assists for Buffalo, while Jeff Teat finished with three goals and seven assists for New York. </p><p>From there the Bandits made it six in a row when they had a much easier time in an 11-8 win over Rochester. The Knighthawks scored four straight goals in the fourth quarter to make things uneasy for those in the KeyBank Center, but Byrne added some insurance with 4:15 left. “It’s been going well,” Steve Priolo said about the season. “I think the
mentality in the locker room is that we’re broken the season into
thirds, and we’re going to be 0-0 going forward. That’s the type of
mentality we have to have in order to keep playing.”</p><p>One of the oddities of the schedule in 2021-22 was that the Bandits didn't leave the state of New York for a game in their first six contests. A change of scenery didn't help on February 12, as Buffalo lost a 12-10 decision to the Toronto Rock in Hamilton. The Rock scored three straight goals in the fourth quarter to pull the win out. </p><p>Then came one of the oddest contests in Bandits' history, at least statistically. came against Albany on February 18 at home. Albany took a 1-0 lead after one period, but Buffalo led at the half, 6-1. The FireWolves rallied to go ahead, 8-6, after 45 minutes. Then the Bandits scored seven straight goals of their own to win by a score of 13-8. That sort of back-and-forth flow isn't too unusual in indoor soccer. What was unusual is that every single goal was scored into the same net. Vinc said later that he thought the goal that allowed no scores should have been named the first star. “The floor must have been tilted,” Tavares joked
afterwards. “I was told that after the game. I don’t think I’ve ever
seen that before. … I still don’t believe it.”<br /><br />
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The Bandits stayed in New York State for the next two games, and won them both. A good second half led to a 14-8 win over Rochester; Byrne finished with eight assists. That was followed by a March 5 trip to Albany in which the teams essentially traded goals for the first 60 minutes. Naturally the game went into overtime, but it didn't take long to setting matters. Buchanan scored only 22 seconds into the extra session to give Buffalo the 12-11 win.</p><p>Buffalo was 9-1 and again flying. The Bandits might have played their best overall game of the season on March 12. They ran up 17 goals, including the last six, as the Philadelphia Wings were powerless to stop them. Smith had 10 assists and 12 points. At the other end, Vinc stopped 50 of 55 shots to guarantee win no. 10. That added up to a 17-5 win. “The defense, that was one of their best games,” Tavares said. “That’s a
really potent offense. They have a lot of offense threats. And when
they did get a chance, Matty was incredible.”</p><p>The NLL trading deadline arrived at that point, and the Bandits were coming into it in a position of strength. They traded former first-round draft pick Brent Noseworthy and a fourth-rounder to New York for a first-round choice in 2024. It's impossible to predict the future in such things, and the Riptide does have a great building block in Teat. But, New York did finish 6-12 during the 2021-22 season, so it is at least possible that the Riptide's choice in the 2024 will be a prime one for Buffalo. <br /></p><p>After a week off, the Bandits had a chance to make a huge statement about the division race. They were scheduled to meet Halifax in a home-and-home series on March 26 and 27. The Thunderbirds were still holding out hopes that they could catch Buffalo in the East Division, but a sweep was probably necessary. That thought died a quick death in Buffalo, thanks to a 16-11 win that featured a 10-3 edge in the second half. Nine different players scored, and Smith had nine points. “It’s a total trust,” Byrne said about the balanced attack. “As you long
as you can sit there and look at a guy on the bench and trust that
he’ll make the right play at the right time, it goes a long way. It
feels like you don’t have to do too much, and stick to your strengths.”</p><p>A day later, the Bandits had a 7-2 lead after the first period, and the game essentially was decided. Buffalo again won by a 17-12 score, although Halifax had to score five of the last six goals to make it respectable. Vinc had 60 saves on 71 shots, and Smith had five goals. Four days later, the Bandits had a rare Thursday night game in Philadelphia, and beat the Wings again easily, 17-12. Philadelphia scored seven goals in the fourth quarter to make the final score look reasonable. </p><p>The Bandits had to fly to Colorado and its mile-high altitude two days later for a game with the Mammoth. It was almost unfair to schedule a team to play three games within a week, but that was the assignment. The game was close throughout, but Connor Robinson's goal with a minute left was the different in the Mammoth's 15-14 win. That ended Buffalo's seven-game win streak and put the team's record at 13-2. </p><p>The defeat was no cause for alarm, but the game at home at New York a week later was a bit more of a concern. The Bandits had a terrible first half, falling behind by a 10-3 score. This time it was Buffalo's turn to score some goals that didn't really matter, as they closed with four straight to make the score 15-12 in favor of New York. The game had been a chance to clinch home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. “We came out flat,” Smith said. “We thought they’d just give it to us.
Every team in this league is a great team. We had just a terrible first
half.”</p><p>The Bandits had to wait a week, then, to celebrate the top seed in the playoffs. They left little doubt after an eight-goal second period. Buffalo won by a score of 18-9, as Smith had nine points and Cloutier added eight. That meant the final game of the regular season was completely meaningless ... except that Toronto had been playing extremely well down the stretch, and a playoff meeting between the teams seemed likely. The offenses didn't do much for about 50 minutes, but Toronto closed the show with six straight goals for a 10-7 win. “There are a couple of ways to look at it,” Kyle Buchanan said. “You
don’t want to go out on a low note, but we were 14-4. That’s a heck of a
year. You have to keep that in mind.”</p><p>Individually, Smith shattered some records with his 135 points on the season; he also had 94 assists to set an NLL mark. Byrne was sixth in the league in scoring with 99 points and his four shorthanded goals lead the league. Nanticoke had six game-winning goals to top the NLL. Vinc was first in the league in saves and save percentage. The Bandits did have the league's best attendance for the first time since 2017. However, the number was 9,921 - the first time since at least 2005 that the league leader was under 10,000. The NLL's average attendance dropped from 8,035 in 2019-20 to 6,865 in 2021-22. Some of that was the pandemic, but it's tough to figure out else went wrong in that area. <br /></p><p>The playoffs opened at home against Albany, and goals were tough to find in the early going. The score was 2-2 after 30 minutes, as Vinc and Albany's Doug Jamieson traded saves. Buffalo's Smith and Byre scored in the first two minutes of the second half, and the team never looked back. The Bandits scored the game's final three goals to finish with the 10-5 win. </p><p>The victory moved Buffalo into the East finals. Due to a scheduling conflict, the Bandits and Rock had to open their series on Sunday, May 15. The day before, however, Buffalo was rocked by a mass shooting that killed 10 people in a supermarket. The game had to be played, but it was hard to know what to expect from everyone - from players to fans. Somewhat unexpectedly, what the 10,258 in the building saw was perhaps the most intense game in Bandits' history.</p><p>Not every goal was SportsCenter worthy, but it was close, as Buffalo set a furious pace. However, whenever the Bandits relaxed for a minute, Toronto came right back. It was like that for the entire game. The Rock's final comeback took place in the final seconds. Trailing by two, Tom Schreiber scored with 11 seconds left to narrow the Buffalo lead to 18-17. Toronto then won the faceoff, moved the ball up the field, and got the ball to Rob Hellyer ... who was alone in front. But he hit the goalpost, the ball went into the corner, time ran out, and the Bandits had a win to remember.<br /><br />
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Byrne finished with 11 points, and Smith added 10. Both are people of color, and they were in pain over the shooting. Smith became the team spokesman concerning the shooting. “I’m not the type of guy to talk too much,” Smith said. “I’m a shy guy,
and I don’t like to talk about my feelings. I did get emotional before
the game regarding what happened (Saturday) in Buffalo. It’s tough for
everyone in Buffalo and the world in general. Basically, my story was
that I play lacrosse because I love it, and I want to show kids of color
that they can play at the top of the level and be a pro.”</p><p>How could a game top that for emotion and excitement? Nothing could do that, but the Bandits and Rock certainly tried. It was close until the fourth quarter, when Buffalo moved ahead by 9-5 on three straight goals from Smith, Fraser and Byrne. The Rock answered with three of its own. Fraser added some insurance with 3:34 left, but Schreiber struck again with 46 seconds left ... and soon Toronto had the ball with a chance to tie. Almost unbelievably, Dan Craig was left alone on the doorstep, and the Rock forward one-timed the ball at Vinc at the buzzer. But would the goal count? Officials checked the replay and saw the ball enter the net about a tenth of a second, if that, after the clock struck all zeroes. In other words, no goal. Game over.<br /><br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/AS88FDpZefw" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><br /><br />The Bandits had swept the best-of-three series by a fraction of an inch and a fraction of a second. That sounds like a tough act to follow. Still, Buffalo was in the NLL Finals, hoping once again to win its first championship since 2008. Colorado had won the West in a way that almost matched the Bandits' dramatics. </p><p>There wasn't much to choose between the teams that opened the playoffs on June 4 at the KeyBank Center. Buffalo kept taking small leads, and Colorado kept coming back. The Mammoth tied the game early in the fourth quarter, and the teams traded goals down the stretch. That left the score at 14-14 with under a minute left. Colorado had a bad change after a 30-second violation, and Ian MacKay sent Nick Weiss off with a long breakaway. Weiss had about half the floor to cover on the breakaway, which gave him the chance to plan his shot and ponder the situation. Then he put the ball in the top corner for the go-ahead goal. <br /></p><p>“(Ian MacKay) made an unbelievable play on a loose ball, … and I just
saw open floor,” said Weiss – he of three goals in the entire regular
season. “I started running, he gave it to me. Most of the guys on my
team knew exactly where I was shooting the ball.”</p><p>But still, the game wasn't over. Eli McLaughlin had the ball at the crease for Colorado with a few seconds left, but Vinc made the save and time ran out. Somehow, the Bandits had survived another preposterous game. At that point, it seemed as if Buffalo was leading a charmed life in its playoff run; destiny was always on its side.<br /><br />
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But then the Lacrosse Gods changed their minds. In Game Two of the best-of-three series in Denver, the Bandits held a 8-6 lead with 12 minutes left after a goal by Buchanan. But it was the Mammoth, playing without its top two scorers, that found its scoring touch. Colorado scored five straight goals to win, 11-8.</p><p>It was back to Buffalo, and the fans were waiting. The Bandits recorded their first sellout in more than four years, as everyone wanted to see their favorite team wrap up a championship at home. The 19,060 in the building were ready to explode at any moment, and Colorado's biggest task was to not let the emotion of the day carry Buffalo forward. The Mammoth did that. After an mostly even first period, Colorado used a 5-2 run to take a 7-5 lead at halftime. The Mammoth had some good chances to pad its lead in the third period, but Vinc stopped everything in sight to keep his team within striking distance. And the Bandits did tie the game, 7-7, early in the fourth quarter. Anyone's game.</p><p>The Mammoth took it. Zed Williams, who grew up in nearby Silver Creek, took a long slot from high in the slot that seem to pass through about five bodies on its way to the net for the go-ahead goal. Chris Wardle made it a two-goal lead a couple of minutes later. The Bandits kept trying to come back, throwing 24 shots on goalie Dillon Ward. But most of the shots were from long range, as they had been most of the night. Ward almost always was in a good position to see and stop the shots. A couple of late goals didn't alter the game's trajectory, and the Bandits fell, 10-8. Ward was the Most Valuable Player of the Finals.<br /><br />
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Priolo, who has been chasing a title since 2010 in Buffalo, was as downcast as you'd expect after the game. “It hurts mostly because it was in front of our fans,” he said. “You
feel like you let the city down. It hurts that way. We were good, we
were bonded, and we had a lot of things going for us. I feel like I’m
dreaming right now.”</p><p>“I’m not going to sugarcoat it – it’s heartbreaking,” Dietrich said.
“Someone told me, the sun’s going to rise. My reply was, I still haven’t
gotten over 2006 (his first loss in the finals with the Bandits). It’s
going to be a long time to get over this one.” <br /></p><p></p><p></p><p>By any stretch of the imagination, it had been a great season for the Bandits. They won 18 of 24 games. Smith was named as the league's MVP, and Vinc was the goaltender of the year. It's not fair that the team will be remembered for not finishing the job, but that's the reality of pro sports. Buffalo's front office figured to be haunted by a simple question throughout the summer and fall: How can the team take that last step?</p><p><i>(Follow Budd on Twitter @WDX2BB) </i><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-24872728237415305512022-05-15T09:14:00.013-04:002023-06-04T17:13:55.880-04:00Top One-Game Save Percentage in Bandits Playoff Game (2005-2023)<p>Not surprisingly, Matt Vinc dominates both of these lists - for and against the Bandits. He broke the "record" for the Bandits in twice in the 2023 playoffs, breaking his own record in the championship final. The first list is for Buffalo goalies:<br /></p><p><b>Name - Opponent - Date - Saves/Shots - Pct.</b></p><p>Vinc - Colorado - 6/3/23 - 46/50 - .920</p><p>Vinc - Toronto - 5/12/23 - 52/57 - .912</p><p>Vinc - Albany - 5/17/22 - 45/50 - .900</p><p>Vinc - New England - 5/14/19 - 46/52 - .885</p><p>Cosmo - Toronto - 5/5/12 - 48/55 - .873 </p><p>Vinc - 5/6/23 - 44/51 - .863 <br /></p><p>Montour - Boston - 5/2/09 - 47/55 - .855</p><p>Thompson - Minnesota - 4/22/07 - 38/45 - .844<br /></p><p>Vinc - Toronto - 5/11/19 - 43/51 - .843</p><p>Dietrich - Minnesota - 4/23/06 - 49/59 - .831</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>And while we are at it, we can look at opposing goalies. Someone must play at least 45 minutes to qualify, and Vinc has that record too:</p><p><b>Name - Opponent - Date - Saves/Shots - Pct.</b></p><p>Vinc - New York - 5/9/09 - 41/44 - .932</p><p>Del Bianco - Calgary - 5/18/19 - 48/55 - .873</p><p>Ward - Colorado - 6/18/22 - 55/63 - .873 <br /></p><p>Jamieson - Albany - 5/7/22 - 49/57 - .860</p><p>Rose - Toronto - 5/5/12 - 36/42 - .857 </p><p>Ward - Colorado - 6/11/22 - 40/48 - .833<br /></p><p>Bold - Saskatchewan - 5/28/16 - 43/52 - .827</p><p>Bold - Saskatchewan - 6/4/16 - 47/57 - .825 </p><p>Nash - Colorado - 5/13/06 - 41/50 - .820<br /></p><p>Jamieson - New England - 5/4/19 - 46/57 - .807 </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p><b>Updated as of June 4, 2023</b><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-63561440083607572602022-01-18T12:53:00.006-05:002023-05-03T17:24:20.952-04:00Best/Worst Starts (Wins/Losses) by Bandits as a Team<p>The Bandits' fast start in 2021-22 started the usual questions, along the lines of "When was the last time the team started a season with four straight wins?" It doesn't take much to figure that out. The team's 0-1 start in 2022-23 did not earn a spot on the list. <br /></p><p>
Here are the best starts in team history:</p><p>
8 wins - 1993 (finished 8-0)</p><p>7 wins - 1996 (finished 8-2) </p><p>6 wins - 2021-22 (finished 14-4)<br /></p><p>5 wins - 2009 (finished 10-6)</p><p></p><p>4 wins - 1994 (finished 6-2)<br /></p><p>3 wins - 2001 (finished 8-6)</p><p>3 wins - 2003 (finished 12-4)</p><p>2 wins - 2006 (finished 11-5)</p><p>2 wins - 2012 (finished 7-9)<br /></p><p></p><p>And of course, the worst starts need to go on here as well:</p><p>4 losses - 2010 (finished 8-8) <br /></p><p>3 losses - 1992 (finished 5-3)</p><p>2 losses - 2017 (finished 6-12)</p><p><b>Updated on December 31, 2022</b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-16891571008212830552020-06-18T14:00:00.000-04:002020-06-18T14:00:02.825-04:00The 2019-20 Season<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqTUFbXzqlgOi0AdZ7KJOu8EsTeA41Dy0wVSjhgZ-paJnqRNBs-xVIHakz_pAtRrfXBBpLElwcoqhFdJ3dztv6-rMGwO5ko25Wv6zR-jGzT93kUlzFmgu-QYvK8WEelsHo0qhJa4fZYSw/s1600/Bandits.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="650" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqTUFbXzqlgOi0AdZ7KJOu8EsTeA41Dy0wVSjhgZ-paJnqRNBs-xVIHakz_pAtRrfXBBpLElwcoqhFdJ3dztv6-rMGwO5ko25Wv6zR-jGzT93kUlzFmgu-QYvK8WEelsHo0qhJa4fZYSw/s400/Bandits.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
The 2019-20 season figured to be a relatively uncomplicated one for the Buffalo Bandits, at least at first glance. After all, they were coming off a narrow loss in the National Lacrosse League finals to Calgary, but still had plenty of talent coming back. Incentive did not figure to be a problem entering the new season.<br />
<br />
“When you get that close, it is heart-breaking, but it is motivating,”
defender Steve Priolo said. “We play summer lacrosse, and five days
later I was back on the floor. I needed to play lacrosse and get going.
The start of our season here is scratching that itch that has been
bothering me this summer.”<br />
<br />
As we discovered, the season was many different things - but it was not uncomplicated. It was a rather bizarre season right from well before Opening Night to the premature finish.<br />
<br />
The drama with the expansion draft. The NLL has added new teams in Rochester and New York for the 2019-20 season. The former version of the Rochester Knighthawks had moved to Halifax, and the new version was rebooted under the ownership of Bandits owner Terry Pegula. The Bandits had a lot of talent on the roster, and they couldn't keep all of it.<br />
<br />
Buffalo players were taken in the first two picks of the draft. Shawn Evans went first to Rochester. That made sense from a Knigthhawks viewpoint. Evans was a former league MVP who still had gas in the tank, and was a former Rochester player as well. With the second pick, New York took forward Jordan Durston. Bandits' general manager Steve Dietrich had tried to complete a deal that would have allowed Durston to stay in Buffalo, but couldn't make it work. Durston was one of those players who did the dirty work on offense to provide space for players like Dhane Smith and Josh Byrne to operate.<br />
<br />
That should have been enough bad news for a while. But before training camp, Thomas Hoggarth was lost for the season because an injury. Then Chase Fraser suffered a medical setback that figured to cost him a few weeks of the season. Suddenly and unexpectedly, the Bandits looked very thin up front.<br />
<br />
The defense and goaltending were more or less back intact from 2018-19, although Ethan O'Connor also was lost for the season. However, there was one other change in the team. The Bandits dumped the co-coach concept from the season before, which saw John Tavares and Rich Kilgour split the duties. Now Tavares had the job on his own, and Kilgour departed. Dietrich added the title of assistant coach to the general manager's position. That essentially meant that Tavares gave the orders on the field and Dietrich gave the orders off the field. <br />
<br />
“Obviously there’s a lot more responsibility on my shoulders,” he said.
“Last year, I split the duties with Richie (Kilgour). Now I’m in the
middle of the bench, looking over everything as opposed to focusing on
offense. But we have (Steve) Dietrich looking at the back door, and we
have (Rusty) Kruger taking the front door taking the offense.”<br />
<br />
While the changes didn't figure to make a great deal of difference in the team's play, they came with one bit of sadness. Rich Kilgour had been around the team since Year One, serving a number of different roles with distinction. If there was a Mount Rushmore for Bandits, he probably was on it. If Buffalo was determined to pick one coach, then Tavares was going to get it. But that doesn't mean that the end of Kilgour's association with the team was a good moment for anyone. He deserved a better fate.<br />
<br />
The Bandits opened the 2019-20 regular season where they ended the 2018-19 season: San Diego. The crowd of 10,685 saw a very good game on December 7 but were disappointed with the ending. With the scored tied, 10-10, with less than three minutes to go, Byrne scored a huge go-ahead goal. Smith added two more in the last two minutes, and the Bandits were 13-10 winners.<br />
<br />
The good feelings last for about five minutes into the next game, which came three full weeks after the opener. Byrne and Smith picked up where they left off, and the Bandits had a 2-0 lead over Halifax. Then everything turned sour. The Thunderbirds scored four straight goals to take a 4-2 lead. Then when Buffalo responded with a pair to tie the game at 4-4, Halifax scored nine straight goals to break the game open. It ended 15-10, only because Buffalo scored the final three goals of the game. One of the problems for the Bandits came on faceoffs; the Thunderbirds had a 22-7 edge, which was a big part of a 102-72 advantage on loose balls. <br />
<br />
“I didn’t think it was that bad,” Tavares said about the game. “We didn’t shoot the
ball well, and Halifax shot the ball extremely well. They have a great
offense, and they capitalized on their opportunities. It wasn’t a lack
of effort. It was a lack of skill.”<br />
<br />
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<br />
It was another two weeks before the Bandits played again, and it looked as if they learned some lessons in that span. Buffalo scored early and often to jump ahead of Georgia, 11-3 at halftime. That was essentially the game, which ended up at 16-10. Fraser, back in the lineup, and Smith had six points each. <br />
<br />
That set up a nice divisional game in Buffalo for the Bandits against Toronto. Buffalo added some help up front by signing free agent Garrett Billings shortly before the game. Fraser was anxious to play in his first home game of the season, even though he came down with a digestive illness before the game and wasn't 100 percent. The forward still scored three goals in a 10-8 win.<br />
<br />
I knew coming in from last year, we didn’t end the season the way we
wanted,” Fraser said. “Personally, I wanted to fill a bigger role, do
more for myself and to help this team out. I’m doing all I possibly can
to help us be victorious.”<br />
<br />
Chris Cloutier broke an 8-8 tie with 5:29 left, and Matt Gilray added an empty-netter.<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/i9HxkIh2Aw4" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
Things only got better from there. The Bandits went to Colorado on Jan. 25, and cut things a little close since they trailed, 12-11, with a little more than a minute to go. But Byrne scored with the goalie pulled with 1:03 left (his seventh of the game), and Corey Small won the game with a score at 1:59 of overtime.<br />
<br />
There was more overtime fun at home on Jan. 31. What's more the script was almost exactly the same. Buffalo was down by a goal with 1:08 left when Cloutier tied the score. When extra time began, Small struck again at 1:53.<br />
<br />
“I think I said on the floor, that was about 80 percent Dhane Smith and
about 20 percent me,” Small said. “He made the play call on the bench.
He told me to find a lane backside and keep your stick open and I’ll
find you. That’s pretty much how it happened. Dhane does a great job of
drawing the goalie out of the net and opening up the quick-sticks for
me. We tried one earlier and it didn’t work, but this time we had the
goalie focused on him and it opened up the back side.”<br />
<br />
Let's see how this one looked:<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/aym3l2sqras" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
The Bandits made it five in a row on February 7, with a 15-8 win against Vancouver in British Columbia. Smith had eight points, while Billings, Cloutier and Byrne had six points each. Two days later, the Bandits had to cross the country again in order to play in Toronto. That figured to be trouble, and it was. The Bandits stayed with the Rock for a half (8-8), but only scored one goal in the second half in a 13-9 loss.<br />
<br />
It was tough losing to a division rival, but it at least could be easily excused. The Bandits' next game was a bit more troubling. This was an ugly game - almost as ugly as the 7-6 final score in favor of the Philadelphia Wings. Buffalo scored only two goals in the first 44 minutes of play. It didn't help that Smith and Fraser were out of the lineup. The Bandits did score the final three goals of the game, but it wasn't enough.<br />
<br />
“We were on the perimeter quite a bit,” Tavares said. “We were not
penetrating their defense very much. That’s definitely something that is
concerning, because it’s definitely tough to win lacrosse games when
you don’t penetrate. We’ve got to find a way to get it in tighter.
(Wings goalie and ex-Bandit Zach) Higgins did his job. He made the saves he had to make, and a few others
as well.”<br />
<br />
The Bandits had lost two in a row to fall to 6-3 entering a big home-and-home series with Halifax. The Thunderbirds had been one of the biggest surprises in the league for the season, and it was important not to lose touch with them in the standings. With Smith scheduled to be out for several weeks with a broken finger, Dietrich swung a deal to keep the offense going. He sent Dallas Bridle, the injured Hoggarth, and a second- and third-round pick in the 2020 NLL Entry Draft to Rochester for forward Dan Lintner, defenseman Frank Brown and a fourth-round pick in 2020.<br />
<br />
“It was a pretty crazy week to be honest,” Lintner said. “I was
sitting at my desk when I got the call I was traded here. I didn’t think
about it too much at first, but then it sunk in. It was something I had
to take on. This is a great place to play. Everyone in the room welcomed me with open arms tonight.”<br />
<br />
Lintner and the rest of the team couldn't have gotten off to a better start that night. The Bandits jumped out to a 6-0 lead; no Buffalo team had done that since at least 2005 (that's when the record book starts for such matters). The T-Birds were playing from behind the rest of the way. They got to within 10-8 in the fourth quarter, but Buffalo closed the sale nicely. Lintner had two insurance goals in the final five minutes.<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gZXtQRiA4z4" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
Eight days later, the Bandits returned the favor by playing in Halifax. When Corey Small scored with 1:59 left, it looked as if Buffalo would sweep the two-game series and be in the top spot in the division race at 8-3. But the Thunderbirds scored three straight times to take an 11-9 win. If Buffalo was to remain a contender in the North Division, it would have to go through a tough stretch of the schedule with games against Toronto, New England and Saskatchewan in the remainder of March.<br />
<br />
Or so we thought. <br />
<br />
The COVID-19 virus was on everyone's mind at this point, as the news about the spread of the illness became more and more ominous with each passing day. On March 11, the NBA announced that it was suspending its season, and the NHL followed a day later. At that point, it seemed likely that the NLL would have to follow the other sports into hitting the pause button. Sure enough, that's what happened later that day.<br />
<br />
There was no quick solution to this problem. In early April, the league announced that the rest of the regular season would be cancelled, and that it was looking into its options regarding the playoffs.<br />
<br />
"The one thing I take solace in is that they are trying," Dietrich said in early May. "They haven’t
thrown in the towel yet. They are just like the NBA, NHL and major
league baseball. Everybody is so worried about the health of everyone,
first and foremost. The last thing on everyone’s mind is, when are we
going to be able to play lacrosse? I do know they are still hoping, and
that gives me hope. I hope at some point we can get this going again."<br />
<br />
But a month later, on June 4, the NLL had little choice but to cancel its playoffs. There were the obvious health concerns for the participants, as well as immigration questions. It seemed obvious that the league would have to stage a postseason tournament without fans. That might work for other sports with a large television presence, but the NLL didn't have that as a safety net. Ending the season was the appropriate action under the circumstances.<br />
<br />
That didn't make it any easier for the Bandits to swallow. They finished the regular season at 7-4, a half-game behind Halifax.
Byrne lead the team with 29 goals and 55 points, while Smith had 33
assists in eight games. They certainly had a legitimate chance to do some damage in the playoffs, particularly with Matt Vinc - the best goalie in the history of the game - in their nets. Depending on the timing, Smith probably would have been back in action as well.<br />
<br />
What if? There was nothing they could do about all of it, except prepare for next season ... whenever it started.<br />
<br />
<i>(Follow Budd on Twitter @WDX2BB)</i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-70224805807848496602020-02-10T22:39:00.006-05:002023-04-03T14:21:09.032-04:00Most/fewest power plays in a Bandits game (2007 to 2023)<p>The Bandits of 2022-23 hadn't even finished the season yet, but still had played three games in which they only had one power play. That's quite strange. <br />
<br />Let's take a look at the best and worst power-play totals in regular season games, starting with the last several seasons. <br />
<br />
Here's the most by the Bandits in a game:<br />
<br />
<b>No. - Opponent - Date</b><br />
15 - Philadelphia - 2/24/07<br />
13 - Philadelphia - 3/1/08<br />
11 - @Toronto - 1/29/11<br />
11 - Portland - 3/21/09<br />
11 - @New York - 2/10/08 <br />
<br />
Now the least by the Bandits in a game:<br />
<br />
<b>No. - Opponent - Date</b><br />
1 - @Rochester - 12/11/21 <br />
1 - @Colorado - 1/25/20<br />
1 - Georgia - 4/22/17<br />
1 - Toronto - 1/23/16<br />
1 - @Rochester - 1/31/15<br />
1 - Minnesota - 3/8/14<br />
1 - Edmonton - 3/23/13<br />
1 - Boston - 4/16/11<br />
1 - Toronto - 4/10/10<br />
1 - @Georgia - 1/7/23<br />
1 - Rochester - 2/4/23<br />
1 - @Halifax - 3/3/23<br />
<br />
Let's move to most by opponents in a game:<br />
<br />
<b>No. - Opponent - Date</b><br />
16 - Toronto - 2/2/07<br />
14 - Toronto - 3/31/12<br />
14 - New York - 1/19/08 <br />
13 - @Minnesota - 1/28/12<br />
12 - Vancouver - 3/29/14<br />
12 - Minnesota - 2/28/09 <br />
<br />
Then, the least:<br />
<br />
<b>No. - Opponent - Date</b><br />
0 - @Toronto - 2/9/20<br />
1 - @Georgia - 2/9/19<br />
1 - @New England - 4/26/15<br />
1 - Toronto - 2/14/09<br />
1 - Philadelphia - 3/12/22 <br /></p><p>
Finally, the most by both teams combined:<br />
<br />
<b>No. - Opponent - Date</b><br />
23 - Philadelphia - 2/24/07<br />
22 - New York - 1/19/08<br />
22 - @New York - 2/10/08 <br />
21 - Vancouver - 1/13/18<br />
21 - Minnesota - 2/28/09 <br />
21 - Toronto - 2/2/07<br />
<br />
And the least - note that a Buffalo-Toronto playoff game in 2022 had one power play combined:<br />
<br />
<b>No. - Opponent - Date</b><br />
3 - @Toronto - 2/9/20<br />
3 - @Colorado - 1/25/20<br />
3 - Toronto - 1/23/16<br />
3 - Minnesota - 3/8/14<br />
3 - Philadelphia - 3/12/22</p><p>
<b>Updated through April 3, 2023</b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-88579646441031424562019-12-29T20:16:00.005-05:002023-04-12T13:12:03.157-04:00Bandits' Loose Ball Differential <p>In losing to Halifax on Dec. 28, 2019, the Bandits lost the loose ball battle by 30. The Thunderbirds picked up 102 of them, while Buffalo had 72.<br />
<br />
The question came to mind: Is the 30-ball difference any sort of team record? It was time to find out.<br />
<br />
Let's go back into history and see the biggest differences in loose ball collections by game. By the way, they only go back to 2006. We start with Buffalo's biggest edge in this department:<br />
<br />
<b>Team - Date - LB-LBA - Diff.</b><br />
Minnesota - 2/4/11 - 88/44 - +44<br />
@Vancouver - 1/17/15 - 79-39 - +40<br />
Philadelphia - 4/14/06 - 89-50 - +39<br />
New England - 4/30/16 - 101-66 - +35<br />
Toronto - 4/16/16 - 96-62 - +34<br />
Minnesota - 3/4/06 - 84-53 - +31 <br />
@Georgia - 2/14/16 - 73-44 - +29<br />
Rochester - 2/14/15 - 62-34 - +28<br />
Boston - 4/16/11 - 82/55 - +27 <br />
@New England - 3/23/18 - 98-72 - +26<br />
@Philadelphia - 1/15/11 - 93-67 - +26 <br />
<br />
And now for the worst numbers in recent team history; we had an addition to this list in the 2022-23 season as Toronto had a big game in that category (but somehow still lost): <br />
<br />
<b>Team - Date - LB-LBA - Diff.</b><br />
Washington - 4/28/12 - 49-97 - -48<br />
@Philadelphia - 2/17/07 - 73-117 - -44<br />
@Halifax - 3/27/22 - 67-103 - -36<br />
@Toronto - 12/17/22 - 64-100 - -36<br />
Halifax - 12/28/19 - 72-102 - -30<br />
Boston - 4/18/09 - 52-82 - -30 <br />
Arizona - 4/7/07 - 43-73 - -30<br />
@San Diego - 4/27/19 - 57-83 - -26<br />
Toronto - 1/18/20 - 35-61 - -26<br />
Calgary - 12/4/21 - 58-84 - -26<br />
<br />
<b>LB is loose balls, LBA is loose balls against. </b><br />
<br />
<i>Updated on April 12, 2023</i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-15453147777400281782019-05-31T21:15:00.005-04:002023-05-02T13:34:08.576-04:00Most/least Bandits goals allowed in three games (1992 to 2022-23)<p>We did this for goals scored a few years ago. What about the flip side, when the Bandits' defense was particularly leaky?<br />
<br />
Here's what we have for most goals allowed. You should notice that the Bandits set the "record" in their first three games of play. There were no changes in 2022-23. <br />
<br />
<b>Goals - Dates</b><br />
63 - 1/4/92 to 1/24/92<br />
56 - 4/15/17 to 4/29/17<br />
55 - 1/8/00 to 2/5/00<br />
55 - 1/29/00 to 2/12/00<br />
55 - 1/18/92 to 2/8/92<br />
53 - 3/23/13 to 4/6/13<br />
52 - 2/14/98 to 2/21/98<br />
51 - 2/19/16 to 2/26/19<br />
51 - 3/30/01 to 4/7/01 <br />
50 - 12/8/17 to 12/30/17<br />
50 - 1/24/03 to 2/1/03<br />
50 - 2/10/01 to 2/24/01<br />
50 - 3/11/00 to 3/25/00<br />
50 - 1/8/99 to 1/22/99<br />
50 - 1/31/92 to 2/14/98<br />
50 - 2/7/98 to 2/20/98<br />
<br />
Now for the fewest goals allowed, and there's nothing new here either:<br />
<br />
<b>Goals - Dates</b><br />
20 - 1/4/03 to 1/19/03<br />
21 - 1/10/09 to 1/24/09<br />
23 - 1/3/09 to 1/16/09<br />
23 - 1/16/09 to 1/29/09<br />
23 - 12/4/21 to 1/8/22<br />
24 - 12/28/18 to 1/19/19<br />
24 - 3/23/19 to 4/20/19<br />
24 - 12/11/21 to 1/15/22<br />
25 - 4/5/19 to 4/27/19<br />
25 - 2/8/14 to 3/8/14<br />
25 - 2/15/14 to 3/15/14<br />
25 - 3/12/10 to 3/26/10<br />
25 - 2/10/06 to 2/18/06 <br />
<br />
<b>Updated on May 2, 2023 </b><br />
<br />
<i>Be notified of new posts on this site on Twitter via @WDX2BB.</i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-80924506218003222082019-05-28T11:28:00.003-04:002019-12-01T14:56:31.344-05:00The 2018-19 Season<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-0mzWCRhjL9cGsFMDwfLcJm6cg61rqlCv8Lx83b42Ct3g0bKPnHbhPrGC5KrJfczwjr_Zr-MPUmqPI_O9DMObDyNzbfY89dUmUoTGaE7nYq3QLKf7FrXUuZNr1iN3nDRyaF_Um8cOChk/s1600/Bandits+YB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1300" data-original-width="980" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-0mzWCRhjL9cGsFMDwfLcJm6cg61rqlCv8Lx83b42Ct3g0bKPnHbhPrGC5KrJfczwjr_Zr-MPUmqPI_O9DMObDyNzbfY89dUmUoTGaE7nYq3QLKf7FrXUuZNr1iN3nDRyaF_Um8cOChk/s400/Bandits+YB.jpg" width="301" /></a></div>
The Buffalo Bandits knew changes had to be made for the 2018-19 season. They just didn't know what they needed to be.<br />
<br />
The Bandits were coming off two straight seasons of missing the playoffs, which was unacceptable in Banditland. Buffalo was traditionally one of the leaders in attendance in the National Lacrosse League, and the team needed to win to keep the seats in the KeyBank Center occupied. When the previous season ended, the big questions centered on who would be on the roster, and who would be the coach? <br />
<br />
At least part of the answer came relatively quickly. Steve Dietrich was told fairly early in the offseason that he would be back as Buffalo's general manager. Dietrich not only had to decide the fate of head coach Troy Cordingley and the rest of the staff, but get ready for the Entry Draft and the Expansion Draft as well as look at the free agent class.<br />
<br />
Stocking the new teams was the first matter for the league's teams, as the expansion draft came in July. The teams took turns making picks - Philadelphia stuck to the East while San Diego picks players from the West - with each existing franchise losing two players. Dietrich completed some trades to get the results he wanted. He sent Zac Reid to Philadelphia; in return the Wings took Vaughn Harris in the expansion draft. Buffalo also acquired Bryce Sweeting, taken by San Diego during the expansion draft, from the Seals for Ethan Schott and a second-round pick later in the year.<br />
<br />
The coaching situation dragged through the summer without resolution, and the delay rubbed some the wrong way. Word leaked out around Labor Day that Cordingley would not be back as the head coach. Even Cordingley that he needed a break from coaching at this point in his life. But, a replacement didn't turn up until September 20; actually "replacements" would be a better term. John Tavares and Rich Kilgour were named co-coaches of the team.<br />
<br />
"We talked to many people and left no stone unturned to decide what was best for this franchise moving forward, when we decided we wanted to make a change. And everywhere we went, something kept pulling us back to the idea of promoting Richie and JT," Dietrich said to The Buffalo News later in the season. "They’ve been teammates for such a long time. They coached together with the Bandits and in the summertime."<br />
<br />
It was almost as if Dietrich realized that Kilgour and Tavares - two original Bandits - both deserved a chance at the job, and that hiring one might cost the team the services of the other. So both men received a share of the job. Kilgour and Tavares split responsibilities into defense and offense respectively, and they more or less alternated the job of talking to the media after the games. Cordingley landed a front-office position.<br />
<br />
With that settled, the drafts awaited. Dietrich had indicated that he wanted to add good young players to the team, and this was an excellent chance to do just that. Buffalo had the third and fourth picks in the first round. There were rumors that the Bandits would trade up, but they stayed put instead and grabbed Matt Gilray and Ian MacKay on Sept. 25. Both would be on the roster for the entire season.<br />
<br />
Players moves continued through September and October. For example, the Bandits <span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , sans-serif , "emojifont" , "apple color emoji" , "segoe ui emoji" , "notocoloremoji" , "segoe ui symbol" , "android emoji" , "emojisymbols"; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "times new roman" , "times" , serif , serif , "emojifont"; font-size: small;">traded Ryan Fournier to the New England Black Wolves for Matt Spanger.</span></span> Adam Will was shipped to San Diego for a conditional pick. Ethan O'Connor came to Buffalo from Georgia for two future picks. But the scheduled start of training camp was delayed because of the lack of a collective bargaining agreement between the players and owners - something that had put other moves into the proverbial freezer.<br />
<br />
Not much happened in the talks in the fall, and it became more and more obvious that the start of the season in early December was in jeopardy. In mid-November, the NLL cancelled the first two weeks of the regular season. That probably put a bit of a scare into all concerned, and the two sides reached an agreement about nine days later. The schedule was extended an extra week until the end of April, while the other week's games were slipped into the existing schedule.<br />
<br />
Then on Nov. 27, just before the start of training camp, the Bandits announced that Matt Vinc had signed a three-year contract with the team. Vinc was considered one of the best goaltenders in NLL history, and he saved some of his best work for Buffalo over the years. Now the Bandits had solved a glaring weakness in their lineup. Vinc had been with the Rochester Knighthawks, a franchise that was scheduled to move to Halifax in the fall of 2019. The chance to play close to home in St. Catharines, Ont. - on a three-year contract - proved to be the right incentive.<br />
<br />
“This was the hardest decision of my life that has impacted not only my
family but everyone that has played a valuable role in my career,” Vinc
wrote on Twitter after the announcement. “Ultimately I had to make the
best long term decision for myself and my family.”<br />
<br />
More from Vinc:<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OtrVzocLDb8" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
Buffalo also traded Mitch Jones to Vancouver for Corey Small. The deal fit the personal requests of both players, who wanted to play on the other side of the continent. So there were plenty of new faces on the opening day roster, but they did not include Mark Steenhuis. The veteran forward went on injured reserve just before the season, and never came off of it. A full explanation of his status was never given in a curious episode.<br />
<br />
The Bandits were selected to be the opponents in the history of the new edition of the Philadelphia Wings on Dec. 15. The two teams were bitter rivals back in the 1990s. The Wings looked like a representative team in the opener, but Buffalo scored the final two goals to pull out a 17-15 win. Shawn Evans had the game-winner as part of a nine-point afternoon. But defense continue to be a problem a week alter, when the Bandits lost, 17-12, at home to Toronto on Dec.. 21.<br />
<br />
“We had a great start, and that’s all it was,” Shawn Evans said. “We
came out hot in the home building, but that’s all we did. We fell
apart.”<br />
<br />
The Bandits went back to the drawing board, made some adjustments, and came back right after Christmas to beat Vancouver, 18-10. An 8-1 burst in the second quarter more or less settled the outcome. Evans had 11 points and Josh Byrne added 10. Then Vinc slammed the door on his old teammates as the Bandits smothered Rochester, 13-4. The goalie stopped 55 of 59 shots in one of the great statistical performances in recent NLL history. That helped him pass Anthony Cosmo to set a league record for career saves.<br />
<br />
“I think we did a great job,” Vinc said about the team’s defense. “There
was a lot more communication than there was in the other games. We did a
great job limiting their transition. They are a dangerous team with a
good power play. We did a good job of limiting their time and space, and
we pushed the ball pretty well and scored a couple of big goals in
transition.”<br />
<br />
Vinc set another record in his next game, breaking the NLL mark for minutes played by a goalie, in a 14-10 win over Philadelphia. Buffalo blew a 7-1 lead and were tied 10-10 with about eight minutes left. Then the Bandits finished with four straight goals to move to 4-1. The three-game win streak died on Jan. 26 in Rochester, as Austin Shanks had seven goals as the Knighthawks took an 18-13 win.<br />
<br />
That merely angered the Bandits, who immediately started another winning streak. Vinc was almost unbeatable again, allowing just five goals in a 15-5 romp at New England. Colorado was a tougher opponent, but the Bandits still came away with a 15-12 win. Dhane Smith had eight points in the winning effort.<br />
<br />
“I struggled at first, but the points are going to come,” Smith said.
“We’re not looking for me to shoot. It’s not how it used to be. Everyone
is working with each other, and we’re getting great shots. It’s
different, and it’s fun.”<br />
<br />
After the Colorado game, the Bandits added some more young talent. They sent a future first-round pick in 2021 and Ryan Wagner to Philadelphia for Chris Cloutier. That meant the Bandits had the second, third and fourth overall picks from the 2018 draft on their roster. <br />
<br />
Georgia, a rival in the NLL East, was supposed to be a good match for the Bandits, but Buffalo ran over them with a 19-9 win. Smith had 11 assists, while Evans finished with 10 points as the Bandits had a 70-41 edge in shots. Calgary was a handful in a Feb. 16 match, but Smith and O'Connor scored in the final seven minutes to break a 10-10 tie and give the Bandits a 12-10 lead. Cloutier made his debut for Buffalo in that game.<br />
<br />
“It was awesome,” Cloutier said.
“Growing up, I always came here for Bandits game. My friends said before
the draft, if you have your choice, where would you like to go? I said,
Buffalo. Now, it’s a lucky thing for me that I ended up here. I’m
pumped to be here. With the leadership on this team, I’m going to learn a
lot.”<br />
<br />
About the only thing that could slow Buffalo at this point was a scheduling problem. The Bandits needed overtime to beat Philadelphia on March 8, with Chase Fraser getting the goal. But Buffalo looked weary a night later and saw its six-game winning streak end with a 14-9 loss to the Swarm. Five straight goals by Georgia in the second half put this one away.<br />
<br />
“Some nights you’re the hammer, some nights you’re the nail,” Kilgour said. “We’ve been the hammer a lot this year, but tonight
we were the nail.”<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/D-49BFtzW4c" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
Again, it was time to stop the losing "streak" at one. Buffalo went into Saskatoon and beat the Rush, 12-11. Fraser again had the overtime goal. The Bandits came home on March 22 and took part in one of the best duels of goalies in recent memory. Vinc and Nick Rose were both terrific, but Vinc earned the 8-6 victory.<br />
<br />
“Rose, I don’t know how he did it tonight,” Byrne
said. “He made one on (Jordan Durston) that was unbelievable. Vino was
lights out as usual. When we let our guard down for a moment, our
defense and goaltending were there.”<br />
<br />
The Rock earned some revenge on April 5, scoring the final three goals - including one in overtime - to beat Buffalo, 12-11. It eclipsed a five-goal game from Smith But the Bandits bounced back two weeks later and stopped New England, 12-6. That handed Buffalo the division title and top seed in the playoffs.<br />
<br />
“It’s huge,” Dhane Smith said about the first-place finish. “We
haven’t done that since 2016 and it’s special. I knew from the beginning
of training camp that we had something special. We came out and proved
it. We had some lapses, but good teams find a way. Hopefully people can forget about the last two years. I know I have. Now we’re looking forward to the future.”<br />
<br />
The last game of the season was therefore moot, but the Bandits won it anyway over San Diego, 18-7. Evans had eight points and Fraser finished with six. Buffalo finished the regular season 14-4. Smith had 102 points (fifth in the NLL) and Evans wound up with 94 (tied for seventh). Small led the team in goals with 36, while Thomas Hoggarth and Fraser added 29 each. Steve Priolo was second in the league in scoring among defensemen with 26 points, and may have had the best all-around season of his career. Vinc finished with 14 wins, a 10.02 goals-against average and a .803 save percentage - all the best figures among starters in the league.<br />
<br />
As a team, Buffalo scored 244 goals, most in the league. It gave up 186, the fewest in the league. The Bandits were 7-2 at home and 7-2 on the road; they were 9-4 against the East and 5-0 against the West. The team was first in power-play goals with 46 (third in percentage) and first in penalty-killing percentage. The Bandits were second in the league in attendance <br />
<br />
There was no first-round bye in the playoffs this season, as the NLL changed the format so that eight of 11 teams reached the postseason. Buffalo drew New England in the first round on May 4. The Bandits scored three goals in the first three minutes and never looked back to win, 12-6. Smith finished with seven points. Here are the highlights:<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/aXkQ_logg6I" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
The East Division final took place a week alter, and Toronto was back in town for it. The Rock had won two of the three regular-season meetings between the teams, making this one a potential toss-up. It was a game of runs, but Buffalo had the last one - four straight goals in the fourth quarter to pull away to a 12-8 victory. Small had three goals and Smith finished with five assists.<br />
<br />
Plenty of highlights here:<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/E5vqW6b4wPQ" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
That led to a slightly surprising matchup with the Calgary Roughnecks in the final. Calgary had finished in a tie for second in the West at 10-8, but had won two games to reach the title round. The Roughnecks' only championship came at the expense of the Bandits in 2004.<br />
<br />
The offenses started slowly in this game, as Vinc and Christian Del Bianco smothered everything that came their way. The score was 2-2 at the half, setting a record for fewest goals in the half of a championship round game. But Calgary scored three straight goals at the end of the third quarter to take a 5-3 lead, which felt like a huge margin under the circumstances.<br />
<br />
“Putting in a couple in a row took some weight off our shoulders,” Duch
said. “It’s the Buffalo Bandits. That’s a team that can score goals in
bunches. We knew the lead wasn’t safe, but at least it let us take a
deep breath.”<br />
<br />
The Roughnecks increased that lead to 9-4 with 10 minutes left. Buffalo reduced that margin to two goals but could get no closer, and Calgary departed with a win in the first game of the best-of-three series.<br />
<br />
“We obviously wanted to win this game,” Small said. “We had a great crowd
tonight that our backs, but we let one go. Fortunately for us, the way
this playoff goes, it’s a best-of-three series. We have the opportunity
to go home, watch some film, and get ready for the next game. We seemed
to answer losses well this year, so we’ll have another opportunity to
bounce back here.”<br />
<br />
The two teams headed to Calgary on May 25 for Game Two, and they played a classic. Neither side could hold a lead for long, and the two squads were a combined 9 for 10 on the power play. The Bandits got three goals in a row to close the third quarter in a 10-10 tie. Calgary notched two goals to take a 12-10 advantage; Buffalo got those back on goals by Jordan Durston and Smith. Dane Dobbie put the Roughnecks in front with 55 seconds left, but Small tied the game at 13-13 with 28 seconds left.<br />
<br />
The thrills continued in overtime. Buffalo just missed a flurry at the beginning of the extra session. Calgary then came down the floor on its first possession of overtime. Here's the fans' view of what happened next:<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/83yATLWIP6o" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
Rhys Duch scored the game-winner for Calgary, and Buffalo's season was over. The finals looked a great deal like the 2016 version from a Bandits' perspective. They had home field in the first game and lost it. Buffalo fought back in Game Two on the road to be in a position to win, but fell short on the last significant moment of the game. <br />
<br />
Evans and Smith finished with seven points each for the Bandits, who rediscovered their scoring touch in Game Two of the series. But the Roughnecks were a little better on this night.<br />
<br />
It had been a very good season for the Bandits, and they look like a team that will be good as long as Vinc is on top of his game. The young players will only get better, and veterans like Smith and Priolo should remain as the leaders. Still, Buffalo's wait for a championship, last won in 2008, continues in its second decade.<br />
<br />
<i>(Be notified of new posts on this site via Twitter @WDX2BB) </i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-37105446582069282022019-03-23T14:59:00.001-04:002020-04-30T19:43:44.467-04:00Most goalie's wins in a season without a loss (2007 to 2020)It's not easy to have a perfect record as a goalie, since it depends on how good your teammates are. That applies to goalies who don't lose and who don't win.<br />
<br />
It should be noted that if a team falls behind early and changes goalies, it's easy for the backup to get the loss. Say Buffalo falls behind, 6-0, and pulls the starter. The teams each score seven goals to make the final score 13-7. But the backup gave up the eighth goal, so he gets the loss. This isn't like a baseball pitcher. <br />
<br />
We need two decisions to qualify at the moment, as we continue to go back in time:<br />
<br />
<b>Name - Team - Year - Record</b><br />
Gee Nash - Colorado - 2007 - 9-0<br />
Matt King - Calgary - 2009 - 7-0<br />
Ryan Avery - Calgary - 2007 - 4-0 <br />
Angus Goodleaf - Rochester - 2015 - 2-0<br />
<br />
Now the ones who went winless. It's not really fair to the two new additions, since they lost some chances to win. But that's the way it works here:<br />
<br />
<b>Name- - Team - Year - Record</b><br />
Brandon Miller - Toronto - 2016 - 0-6<br />
Matt Roik - Vancouver - 2014 - 0-6 <br />
Brodie MacDonald - Vancouver - 2018 - 0-5<br />
Derek Collins - Chicago - 2008 - 0-5 <br />
Dan Lewis - Colorado - 2013 - 0-4<br />
Steve Fryer - Rochester - 2019-20 - 0-4<br />
Gowah Abrams - New York - 2019-20 - 0-4<br />
Ty Belanger - Vancouver - 2018 - 0-3<br />
Doug Jamieson - New England - 2017 - 0-3<br />
Christian Del Bianco - Calgary - 2017 - 0-3<br />
Angus Goodleaf - Buffalo - 2011 - 0-3<br />
Derek Collins - Rochester - 2009 - 0-3<br />
Dallas Eliuk - Portland - 2008 - 0-3<br />
Mike Poulin - Toronto - 2008 - 0-3<br />
Ken Montour - Philadelphia - 2007 - 0-3<br />
<br />
<b>Updated on April 30, 2020 </b><br />
<br />
<i>Be notified on Twitter of new posts on this site via @WDX2BB.</i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-36202017131437690532019-02-11T15:28:00.008-05:002023-05-29T13:11:49.941-04:00Most Bandits Goals in Game Without PP Goal (2005-2023)<p>Anyone can run up the goal totals when the power-play unit is hot. But what about when it doesn't do a thing in terms of scoring? Let's take a look at how many goals can be scored without the man-advantage. List includes all games, including playoff games. <br />
<br />
Here are the Bandits' examples for most goals:<br />
<br />
<b>No. - Opponent - Date - Result</b><br />
20 - New England - 5/2/15 - Win<br />
18 - Georgia - 2/10/18 - Win<br />
18 - Georgia - 1/7/23 - Win<br />
*18 - Toronto - 5/15/22 - Win <br />
17 - Philadelphia - 3/31/22 - Win <br />
<br />
Then there are the fewest goals: <br />
<br />
<b>No. - Opponent - Date - Result</b><br />
6 - Rochester - 2/8/14 - Loss<br />
6 - Colorado - 3/9/13 - Loss<br />
*6 - Toronto - 5/5/12 - Loss<br />
6 - Philadelphia 2/15/20 - Loss<br />
6 - Rochester - 4/12/08 - Loss<br />
<br />
And here are the outings by Bandits' opponents, starting with the most goals:<br />
<br />
<b>No - Team - Date - Result</b><br />
*17 - Toronto - 5/15/22 - Loss to Bandits<br />
15 - Philadelphia - 12/15/18 - Loss to Bandits<br />
15 - New England - 1/30/16 - Win over Bandits<br />
15 - Rochester - 4/28/18 - Win over Bandits<br />
13 - Toronto - 2/9/20 - Win over Bandits</p><p>And now the fewest goals:<br />
<br />
<b>No. - Team - Date - Result </b><br />
4 - Portland - 3/21/09 - Loss to Bandits<br />
5 - Philadelphia - 3/12/22 - Loss to Bandits<br />
*5 - Toronto - 5/12/23 - Loss to Bandits<br />
6 - Toronto- 1/23/16 - Loss to Bandits<br />
6 - Toronto - 3/23/19 - Loss to Bandits<br />
6 - Philadelphia - 1/15/11 - Loss to Bandits<br />
<br />
It's interesting how balanced the lists are. Score more goals and you win, which makes sense. So how did Rochester not score a power-play goal against Buffalo in 2014, only score eight goals overall, and still win? Fluke of a game. And how about Philadelphia? The Wings scored 15 times without a power-play goal against the Bandits in their first-ever game, but lost. <br />
<br />
There's only been three games since 2012 which featured no power-play goals. One came on March 15, 2015 against Minnesota. The second was on Feb. 9, 2020 in Toronto. Number three came in the playoffs on May 15, 2022. <br />
<br />
<b>* - Playoff game </b><br />
<br />
<b>Updated on May 28, 2023</b><br />
<br />
<i>Be notified of new posts on this site via Twitter @WDX2BB </i><b><br /></b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-52046259950934187012019-01-06T14:15:00.009-05:002024-01-19T11:30:26.935-05:00Top One-Game Save Percentages in a Bandits game (2005 to 2023-24)<p>Seasonal save percentages in lacrosse are much lower than they are in hockey. A good one in a lacrosse season is 75 percent, and a great one is 80 percent.<br />
<br />
That leads to the question - what's a great one-game save percentage in the regular season? After watching Matt Vinc stop 93.2 percent of the shots in Jan. 2019, it was easy to wonder how good that was.<br />
<br />
The answer: really good. I looked at goalies who played the entire game - in other words, no seven-minute relief relief wonders. Here are the top percentages since 2005 (as far back as gamesheets go) in the regular season, starting with the Bandits. The newest edition to the list came this year in Vinc's big game against San Diego, so that's five of the top 10 performances for him:<br />
<br />
<b>Name - Opponent - Date - Saves/Shots - Pct.</b><br />
Matt Vinc - Rochester - 1/5/19 - 55/59 - .932<br />
Matt Vinc - Philadelphia - 3/12/22 - 50/55 - .909<br />
Anthony Cosmo - Rochester - 2/16/13 - 54/60 - .900<br />
Steve Dietrich - Arizona - 4/7/08 - 43/48 - .896 <br />
Ken Montour - Portland - 3/21/09 - 34/38 - .895 <br />
Ken Montour - Rochester - 1/16/09 - 49/55 - .891<br />
Matt Vinc - San Diego - 3/25/23 - 49/55 - .891<br />
Matt Vinc - New England - 1/27/19 - 39/44 - .886 <br />
Daniel Sams - Chicago - 2/24/08 - 60/68 - .882<br />
Matt Vinc - Toronto - 1/8/22 - 45/51 - .882<br />
<br />
Now for Bandit opponents:<br />
<br />
<b>Name - Team - Date - Saves/Shots - Pct. </b><br />
Matt Vinc - Rochester - 4/19/14 - 45/49 - .918<br />
Bob Watson - Toronto - 1/29/11 - 50/55 - .909<br />
Pat O'Toole - Rochester - 1/9/10 - 42/47 - .894<br />
Zach Higgins - Philadelphia 2/15/20 - 44/50 - .880 <br />
Nick Rose - Toronto - 3/23/19 - 53/61 - .869 <br />
Aaron Bold - Edmonton - 3/21/14 - 33/38 - .868<br />
Steve Fryer - Colorado - 3/3/18 - 45/52 - .865<br />
Pat O'Toole - Rochester - 4/12/08 - 38/44 - .864<br />
Matt Roik - Philadelphia - 4/14/06 - 51/59 - .864 <br />
Evan Kirk - New England - 1/2/15 - 50/58 - .862<br />
Bob Watson - Toronto - 3/11/06 - 50/58 - .862<br />
Dallas Eliuk - Philadelphia 2/25/05 - 50/58 - .862<br />
<br />
<b>Updated on January 18, 2024</b><i><b><br /></b></i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-50994162523489786392018-05-11T10:17:00.001-04:002019-05-27T16:07:35.846-04:00The 2017-18 Season<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgazTocs-7jZCFUNtiVmMn7zFhTSYa3Eb2pHKKIogxTyD4d48QftdnCbf7fltbVZybSp6xI02eRmpfhezlMyPJQJtwbSI3Kr7GwYkDg8L54NXtju5511QSuF2CsIv2c-sGmsRsjNxuJOrY/s1600/Yearbook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1300" data-original-width="1005" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgazTocs-7jZCFUNtiVmMn7zFhTSYa3Eb2pHKKIogxTyD4d48QftdnCbf7fltbVZybSp6xI02eRmpfhezlMyPJQJtwbSI3Kr7GwYkDg8L54NXtju5511QSuF2CsIv2c-sGmsRsjNxuJOrY/s400/Yearbook.jpg" width="308" /></a></div>
<br />
The Buffalo Bandits' 2017-18 season may - or may not - have been defined by an offseason conversation.<br />
<br />
The Bandits had come off a dismay 2017 campaign, falling all the way to the worst record in the National Lacrosse League. That was particularly painful since that same team, more or less, went to the NLL Finals one year before.<br />
<br />
Captain Billy Dee Smith and general manager Steve Dietrich had an honest talk. Smith is said to have told Dietrich that the high-pressure coaching techniques of Troy Cordingley had stopped being effective. The Bandits had been listening to Cordingley and predecessor Darris Kilgour for many years, and Smith - representing some of the other veterans - thought a good chunk of the team had tuned them out.<br />
<br />
We don't know how Dietrich reacted when he was first told of the players' thoughts. But his actions indicated that that he didn't agree with the diagnosis.<br />
<br />
Once Dietrich found out he himself would be back for another season, he brought back Cordingley for the 2017-18 season. If Cordingley was smart enough to get the Bandits into the finals in 2016, he didn't turn into the proverbial idiot a season later, the logic went. Assistant coaches John Tavares and Rich Kilgour also returned. There had been some talk that another coach would be added to the staff, but that never happened.<br />
<br />
But there were changes to the roster. Almost anyone over the age of 30 was suddenly at risk. Smith was not offered a renewal of his contract, ending a long run as a Bandit. Ryan Benesch was traded to Colorado for Callum Crawford and Alex Buque. It was a deal that was partially designed to bring in the team's goaltender of the future in Buque. Still, Benesch had been part of a great one-two combination with Dhane Smith for the past few years. David Brock wasn't offered a new contract. Andrew Watt departed. Anthony Cosmo did the expected before the start of the season, and retired. Whew.<br />
<br />
In fairness, Dietrich had talked the previous season about how the Bandits needed to get younger and more athletic. He kept his word on that. The Bandits were to become, for the first time in memory, the youngest team in the NLL.<br />
<br />
"It was tough," Dietrich said about the previous season. "Nobody lived or died with it more than I did, especially when it falls on my lap. It was difficult. I'm glad to be here. We have some redemption to do."<br />
<br />
Other moves were completed as well. Jordan Durston came over from Vancouver for Anthony Malcom, and Reid Acton was picked up from Georgia for a draft choices. Mark Steenhuis - who was indeed older than 30 - moved back to a transition role. Then came the reward of a last-place finish - the first overall pick. That translated to Josh Byrne, who everyone believed could be an elite offensive player once he learned the game.<br />
<br />
"I'm still getting used to it," he said. "It's definitely was different (than outdoor lacrosse) - since it's five on five, you have to be aware of everyone on the field.<br />
<br />
Chase Fraser was the team's second-round pick and was on the opening roster as well. Out the back door, names such as Justin Martin, Ethan Schott and Ryan Wagner were new and contained hopes they'd grow into their roles.<br />
<br />
The season not only started well for the Bandits, but it started early. The new leadership of the NLL wanted to eliminate some of the back-to-back games from previous schedules as well as sew the seeds for a longer season (and thus more revenue), so it started the lacrosse year in the first week of December. The fans were not quite ready for the move - only 11,516 tickets sold in Buffalo - but those that came saw a 13-9 win over the Toronto Rock.<br />
<br />
Dhane Smith had a quiet seven points, but 10 different Bandits scored goals. Buque was sharp in goal as Buffalo closed the game with a decisive 7-3 run.<br />
<br />
"Whenever we broke down, Alex was like a wall back there," Cordingley said.<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wVVkSzLqjRk" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
But those good feelings only lasted 15 days, until the next game. Buffalo started its road season in Rochester on Dec. 23, and it was a disaster from the first faceoff. Rochester scored the game's first five goals in less than nine minutes, and had a 13-5 lead at halftime. It's was about over at that point, and the Knighthawks cruised to a 21-11 win.<br />
<br />
Want more bad news? Buque was pulled in favor of Dave DiRuscio, who faced one shot - and suffered an injury on the play. He didn't know it, but his season was over after 31 seconds. Buque finished up.<br />
<br />
It wasn't much better a week later. The Rock bounced back to also put up 20 goals on the Bandits' defense. It took a 6-2 fourth quarter to put away a 20-13 decision. Therefore, Buffalo's first game in 2018 was a huge one. If the Bandits lost to Calgary at home, they would sink to 1-3 and face a good-sized crisis.<br />
<br />
Buque helped to make sure that wouldn't happen, at least for a while. He was sharp in a 13-8 win over the Roughnecks.<br />
<br />
"I just needed a little bit of time," Buque said. "The last two games didn't go as planned. But it's all about adapting and bouncing back."<br />
<br />
"The guys were frustrated the last two games, but no one threw in the towel," Crawford added. "But if we don't do it again next week, this won't mean a thing."<br />
<br />
Oops. Crawford was right. Vancouver surprised the Bandits with an 11-10 overtime win on Jan. 13. It was a terrible loss against a team that hadn't won a game all season. Then there's the fact that Mitch Jones had tied the game with 22 seconds left to give Buffalo all the momentum it could need, but it didn't help.<br />
<br />
It was time for another crisis, and powerful Saskatchewan didn't seem like the best of opponents in such a situation. The Rush scored six straight goals in the first period while Buffalo was blanked in the opening 15 minutes. Saskatchewan led, 12-5, midway through the third period. What could go wrong?<br />
<br />
From the Rush's standpoint, everything. Buffalo rallied to tie the game, 13-13, with about seven minutes left, gave up two goals and then scored three to win it, 16-15. Saunders had the game-winner at 1:46 of overtime. It might have been the greatest comeback in Bandits' history, especially considering the opponent and the location (Saskatoon).<br />
<br />
Here's how it looked:<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ISymh_rbxzg" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
This win really did become a turning point to the season, at least for a while. Buffalo went back to Rochester on Feb. 3, and came home with a 16-14 win. Byrne had five goals to lead the way. Two games in two days were next on the slate, with Buffalo winning in New England on Feb. 9 by a score of 18-13. The Bandits had to come back a day later to play powerful Georgia, no easy task even when well rested.<br />
<br />
Luckily, Zach Higgins was well-rested. Higgins was signed as a free agent when DiRuscio was injured, and had played in a pair of games in relief of Buque. This was his first start for Buffalo, and he was magnificent in an 18-9 win. The veteran stopped 54 of 63 shots. It might have been the best game by a Bandits' goalie since Ken Montour was in the nets.<br />
<br />
"It was pretty special," Higgins said. "This is a long time coming, and I couldn't wait to get the chance."<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_sDrJ9TlaQw" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
The Bandits were suddenly 6-3, and had a clear lead in the NLL East as they rode a four-game winning streak. It looked like a turnaround through the season's midway point, but it was the same team that quickly went into reverse for a while from that point.<br />
<br />
Rochester sent a strong message in the KeyBank Center by scoring the first seven goals of the game. The Knighthawks went on to a 17-10 win that wasn't that close. Ex-Bandit Joe Resetarits finished the game with 14 points for Rochester, a league record for an American-born player. <br />
<br />
"Some of us have been reading our press clippings on how we had become a good team," Cordingley said. "In every area we were beaten - offense, defense, loose balls."<br />
<br />
That pushed the Bandits in the wrong direction again, despite Dietrich's effort to stop the bad feelings from spreading. He sent Crawford to New England for Shawn Evans, a former NLL MVP and an elite player who seemed to fall out of favor in Connecticut for some reason (he had lost the captaincy of the team earlier in the season.)<br />
<br />
Evans made his debut for Buffalo on the road against the Mammoth. The Bandits fell behind Colorado in the second quarter, then blanked the Mammoth in the final 15 minutes while putting on a late rush. It fell short, as Buffalo lost, 8-7. Saskatchewan didn't blow a lead when given the chance in Buffalo, dominating the Bandits by a 16-10 count.. Robert Church had six goals for Saskatchewan. Then Georgia took control in the final 20 minutes to beat Buffalo, 14-10. The Bandits were suddenly 6-7 with five weeks left on the schedule.<br />
<br />
New England supplied some help in Buffalo's next two games. The Black Wolves broke down defensively many times in a 20-7 loss to visiting Buffalo on March 23. Eight days later, the Bandits were still sharp in a 14-11 home win. That was good for a share of the lead in the NLL East. The division was there for the taking, with all five teams fighting for playoff spots.<br />
<br />
"Every game is a playoff game," Fraser said. "We've got to win out."<br />
<br />
Buffalo had its last non-divisional game of the year on April 14, a chance to gain ground while avoiding the slugfest in the East standings. The Bandits were tied at 7-7 after 30 minutes, and then gave up the first nine goals of the second half. The game finished 16-9. Still Buffalo had two games left at home to conclude the season. A win in one of them might lead to a playoff spot, while two wins could guarantee a home playoff game. But in the tight NLL East, a loss to the wrong team could be very damaging.<br />
<br />
Buffalo's margin for error disappeared on April 21, a 16-11 loss to the Rock. Toronto gave up the first two goals, but then scored seven of the next eight goals. Buffalo never did take the lead after that, although it got the game to even at 8-8.<br />
<br />
<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5TS-TCTwem0" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
Now the Bandits had to win on April 28, and they needed help to reach the postseason. The usual season-ending opponent, Rochester, was in the way, and the Knighthawks needed this one as well. The first surprise of the night came with the starting lineup. Cordingley picked Higgins to be the starting goalie for the biggest game of the season, something that would have been unthinkable a few months before. <br />
<br />
Buffalo got the first two goals before a sellout crowd, but Rochester responded with three of its own. The game went back-and-forth like that for a while until there were less than 20 minutes to go. It was there for the taking, and the Knighthawks took it - with five straight goals. The Bandits responded with four unanswered goals, and had the ball with about a minute left in regulation. But Buffalo couldn't finish the comeback, and an empty-netter finished the story of the season. (Hear Cordingley's postgame comments <a href="https://twitter.com/NLLBandits/status/990412759115284480" target="_blank">here</a>.)<br />
<br />
Buffalo finished 8-10, and out of the playoffs for the season straight year. The Bandits had a losing record for the fourth time in six years. It had been an oddly streaky season, as the team couldn't put together much consistency for more than a few weeks at a time. When it mattered most, Buffalo fell short.<br />
<br />
Individually, Dhane Smith bounced back with 105 points to lead the team in scoring. Evans had 83, and Mitch Jones had a team-leading 38 goals. Byrne finished with 63 points and was one of the league's top rookies. On defense, Steve Priolo had another great season and he and Kevin Brownell split the team's defensive player of the year honors, but the unit was muddled a bit by injuries. Steenhuis missed much of the season that way and didn't have many good moments coming out the back door in 2018. Buque played some good games, but not enough of them. Bandits' management would have to sort out the goaltending situation in the near future.<br />
<br />
But there were other decisions ahead. The NLL planned to expand for the 2018-19 season by two teams, so the Bandits needed to figure out who to protect in the expansion draft. More importantly, who would make those decisions? The Bandits were better in 2017-18 - going from 6-12 to 8-10 - but being one of the three nonplayoff teams would not be acceptable to the leaders of the franchise. Would someone pay the price?<br />
<br />
It figured to be another interesting summer, full of meaty conversations. <br />
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<i>(Be notified of new posts on this site via Twitter @WDX2BB).</i></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-40073991210480199722018-04-03T19:36:00.009-04:002023-05-05T11:08:37.451-04:00Longest Span Between Goals in a Bandits' Game - 2005 to 2022-23<p>As we sat for several minutes while the Bandits and their opponent couldn't score, a question came up along the way.<br />
<br />
What's the longest span between goals in a Bandits' game?<br />
<br />
We know that Buffalo has played in a couple of completely scoreless quarters in recent years (four in history). We also know that the records only go back to 2005. So here's the list, with a fresh addition from the 2023 game in San Diego:<br />
<br />
<b>Time - Date - Opponent</b><br />
21:04 - 4-12-14 - @Minnesota<br />
20:41 - 4-9-11 - @Rochester <br />
19:11 - 1-15-11 - @Philadelphia <br />
18:50 - 1-28-17 - @New England<br />
18:21 - 3-23-17 - @Minnesota<br />
18:17 - 2-18-22 - Albany<br />
18:18 - 1-30-10 - Minnesota <br />
17:06 - 4-19-14 - @Rochester<br />
16:25 - 1-25-14 - Rochester<br />
15:59 - 3-25-23 - @San Diego</p><p><b>Updated through May 5, 2023</b><br />
<br />
<i>Be notified of new posts on this site via Twitter @WDX2BB</i> </p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-39569930431548467482018-01-21T09:25:00.008-05:002023-05-06T16:22:43.759-04:00Biggest Second-Half Comebacks in Bandits' History (2005-2023)<p>Some halftime leads weren't safe during the 2022-23 season. Buffalo erased four margins of at least two goals, and couldn't hold a three-goal edge over Rochester.<br />
<br />Let's look at the top comebacks from halftime deficits by the Bandits first - and I now have added playoff games to the mix. Notice the rallies against Philadelphia:<br />
<br />
<b>Goals - Date - Opponent - Final Score</b><br />
6 - 1/19/18 - @Saskatchewan - 16-15o<br />
6 - 2/20/09 - @Toronto - 17-16o <br />
4 - 1/10/14 - Toronto - 12-10 <br />
4 - 5/5/13 - @Toronto - 7-6<br />
3 - 4/14/17 - @Toronto - 13-8<br />
3 - 3/16/12 - @Toronto - 21-14<br />
3 - 2/16/08 - Minnesota - 16-14<br />
3 - 4/9/05 - @Calgary - 14-9<br />
3 - 4/16/05 - San Jose - 13-10<br />
3 - 1/27/23 - @Philadelphia - 13-9 <br />
3 - 2/18/23 - Philadelphia - 13-12<br />
3 - 5/1/10- @Toronto - 13-11x <br />
<br />
Now, the blown leads: <br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Goals - Date - Opponent - Final Score </b><br />
4 - 3/1/13 - Philadelphia - 11-10o <br />
3 - 1/20/23 - @Rochester - 15-12 <br />
3 - 3/25/17 - @Rochester - 11-10<br />
3 - 4/5/14 - Calgary - 15-13<br />
3 - 4/16/10 - @Orlando - 9-7<br />
3 - 4/18/09 - Boston - 13-12<br />
3 - 3/19/05 - @Rochester - 12-11o <br />
2 - 4/15/17 - @Georgia - 17-16<br />
2 - 2/19/16 - @Toronto - 14-12<br />
2 - 2/20/16 - Georgia - 19-15<br />
2 - 4/15/16 - @Toronto - 12-9<br />
2 - 1/23/15 - @Toronto - 13-11<br />
2 - 1/13/07 - @Colorado - 11-10o<br />
2 - 1/7/05 - Toronto - 15-13<br />
2 - 6/11/22 - @Colorado - 11-8x<br />
<br />
<i>o - Indicates overtime</i></p><p><i>x - Indicates playoffs </i><br />
<br />
<b>Updated through May 5, 2023<br /></b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4054920352414971845.post-67860657218398812472018-01-21T00:49:00.010-05:002024-02-01T14:17:41.103-05:00Biggest Fourth-Quarter Comebacks by Bandits (2005-2024)<p>Lacrosse fans may have noticed that the Bandits trailed Saskatchewan, 6-0, after the first period of their game on Jan. 19, 2018. They also trailed, 12-5, later in the game. Yet Buffalo rallied to win the game, 16-15.<br />
<br />
That raised a question - how great a comeback is that?<br />
<br />
We don't have all the game scoring sheets for Bandits' games; they only go back to 2005. And - let's face it - it would be really tough to go through every single goal and game in team history to see if there was a bigger comeback.<br />
<br />
But there is a simpler way to make something of a judgment. What was the biggest fourth-quarter comeback in recent years? (By that we mean, rallying from a deficit at the end of the third quarter.) Let's take a look back a bit and see; keep in mind that you have to win the game and not just tie it at some point to make this list:<br />
<br />
<b>Goals - Date - Opponent - Final Score</b><br />
4 - 1/19/18 - @Saskatchewan - 16-15o<br />
3 - 3/13/15 - Toronto - 15-12<br />
3 - 2/28/13 - @Toronto - 15-13<br />
3 - 3/8/19 - @Philadelphia - 12-11o <br />
2 - 1/12/13 - Minnesota - 13-12<br />
2 - 2/20/09 - @Toronto - 17-16o<br />
2 - 1/31/20 - Rochester - 16-15<br />
2 - 2/18/22 - Albany - 13-8<br />
2 - 1/13/24 - @Rochester - 15-13<br />
1 - 4/2/16 - @Georgia - 18-14<br />
1 - 2/23/16 - @Rochester - 15-13<br />
1 - 2/7/15 - @Calgary - 15-14o <br />
1 - 3/18/14 - Minnesota - 12-9<br />
1 - 1/19/13 - @Rochester - 14-13<br />
1 - 3/13/10 - @Boston - 9-8<br />
1 - 2/24/07 - Philadelphia - 9-8<br />
1 - 3/18/06 - @Rochester - 14-13o<br />
1 - 4/14/06 - Philadelphia - 8-7<br />
1 - 2/16/19 - Calgary - 12-10<br />
1 - 1/27/24 - @Toronto - 16-14<br />
<br />That's certainly not as many as you'd think - it's an average of a little more than one a year. Since we already are looking up things, let's do the biggest blown leads in the fourth quarter as well. The same rules apply, and - sure enough - we have an addition to the list from 2023:</p><p><b>Goals - Date - Opponent - Final Score</b><br />
4 - 2/21/15 - @Rochester - 13-12o<br />
3 - 3/25/17 - @Rochester - 11-10<br />
3 - 4/5/14 - Calgary - 16-13<br />
3 - 4/30/22 - Toronto - 10-7<br />
2 - 4/29/17 - Toronto - 19-15<br />
2 - 3/1/13 - Philadelphia - 11-10o<br />
2 - 1/27/12 - Philadelphia - 13-10<br />
2 - 3/19/05 - @Rochester - 12-11o<br />
2 - 4/1/05 - Rochester - 11-9<br />
2 - 4/16/05 - San Jose - 13-10<br />
2 - 3/10/23 - Halifax - 10-9o <br /><br />
<i>o - indicates overtime game </i><br />
<br />
<b>Updated through February 1, 2024</b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0